


You Will Be Found

by WritingDaydreams



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir Has a Crush on Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir Identity Reveal, Adrinette, Comedy, Dear Evan Hansen References, Drama, F/M, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Lila Rossi Lies, Marichat, Marinette Dupain-Cheng Needs a Hug, Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug Identity Reveal, Miraculous Ladybug Love Square, Romantic Comedy, Salty Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Songfic, You’ll see, but only slightly - Freeform, music references
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-10
Updated: 2021-02-28
Packaged: 2021-03-09 22:55:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 44,541
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27984165
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WritingDaydreams/pseuds/WritingDaydreams
Summary: “It's a ‘Dear Evan Hansen’ kind of day, isn’t it, Marinette,” Tikki commented as she phased into the bag, giving her holder a sympathetic look as she did.“Oh, Tikki,” the designer said with a humorless chuckle, pinching the bridge of her nose as she headed towards her trap door. “It most certainly is!”
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Alya Césaire/Nino Lahiffe
Comments: 177
Kudos: 247
Collections: Miraculous: Spin The Record Challenge





	1. Anybody Have A Map?

**Author's Note:**

> Anybody Have A Map?
> 
> Special Thank You to [ Khanofallorcs](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Khanofallorcs/pseuds/Khanofallorcs) of being an Awesome Beta!

_ 🎵“And the scary truth is I’m flying blind, and I’m making this up as I go!”🎶 _

“Marinette, are you okay?”

Marinette turned slightly from her position, leaning on the railing of her balcony, looking out at the world to see the little red and black spotted being who had asked her the question.

“Yeah, Tikki,” she said in a quiet, almost sad voice. “I just… woke up an hour ago and couldn’t fall back asleep. So I decided to come up here to do some thinking.”

Tikki flew over to her chosen, a concerned look crossing her tiny little face as she faced her. “What seems to be troubling you?”

The dark-haired girl blew out a raspberry, ruffling her fringe. “The question should be what  _ isn’t  _ troubling me?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well…” she trailed off, the beginnings of being overwhelmed evident on her face

“ **_Can we try to have an optimistic outlook_ ** ?” The Kwami of Creation interrupted her holder, knocking her out of the downward spiral for the moment. “ **_Can we buck up just enough to see the world won't fall apart? Maybe this_ ** **day** **_we decide we’re not giving up before we’ve tried?_ ** **Today** **_, let's make a new start_ ** .” Tikki said as she gave Marinette’s cheek a nuzzle.

A sudden noise interrupted them, making the two glance in the direction from whence it came. Noticing it was her phone with a notification, the designer picked it up to see that Alya had texted her.

“I wonder what Alya wants this early,” Marinette said with a sidelong glance to her Kwami. Tikki gave her a shrug, just as confused as the girl sitting beside her.

**Ladyblogger** : hey gurl wat up? 

R u excited about 2day’s project?

**MDCDesigns** : Yas!

I can’t wait 2 c who I’m partnered with!

**Ladyblogger** : Whoa!

Ur awake!

Wait, y r u awake?

**MDCDesigns** : Couldn’t sleep. 

**Ladyblogger** : That sux

So…

Who do u think ur partner is gonna b?

**MDCDesigns** : idk

But I hope its not Chloe

Or Lila 

**Ladyblogger** : y not Lila?

**MDCDesigns** : sorry Als,

No offense

but...

I don’t trust her on a project this big

**Ladyblogger** : gurl. 

I don’t know what ur issue is wit Lila 

but u need to stop being jelly of her

“How did this get turned into me being jealous of her?” Marinette asked out loud, turning to face the little red embodiment of Creation with wide eyes.

Turning back to her text conversation, the dark-haired girl furrowed her brows as she tried to get her point across to her supposed “best friend”. 

“ **_Another stellar conversation for the scrapbook_ ** ,” the dark haired girl quoted with a sigh as she began typing again. 

**MDCDesigns** : I am NOT jealous of her, Als!

I just don’t trust her.

**Ladyblogger** : so you say gurl

I’ll see u in class

“ **_Another stumble as I’m reaching for the right thing to say_ ** ,” she muttered quietly with a shake of her head, dismayed at the direction the conversation had taken. “ **_I’m kinda coming up empty, can't find my way to you..._ ** ”

**MDCDesigns** : yeah...see u

With a sigh, Marinette exited the text messaging program, checked the time, and slipped her phone into her handbag. It was still pretty early for her to head to school, but she figured that there was a first time for everything. 

“It's a ‘Dear Evan Hansen’ kind of day, isn’t it, Marinette,” Tikki commented as she phased into the bag, giving her holder a sympathetic look as she did.

“Oh, Tikki,” the designer said with a humorless chuckle, pinching the bridge of her nose as she headed towards her trap door. “It most certainly is!”

Her parents were surprised to see their perpetually late daughter up and about so early. 

”Marinette,” her mom called out before the girl could make her escape. ”We’re going to need you to help out after school today. A big order came in, and your father and I need your help to take care of for tonight.”

The dark-haired girl stifled a grimace. She normally didn't mind helping out in the bakery, but today wasn't exactly a  _ normal  _ day.

”I would, Maman, but I'm being assigned a big group project at school today, and I'm not sure when the due date is yet,” Marinette said tactfully.

”I know that your schoolwork comes first, dear,” Sabine countered gracefully as her husband lumbered over to join the pair. ”However, we really could use your help. It would only be for about an hour, give or take.”

It was the  _ give or take  _ that worried her.

Resigned to her fate, Marinette bowed her head dejectedly and mumbled, ”Yes, Maman.”

”Thank you. You're a good girl, Marinette, ” said her father, patting her on the back before heading back to the ovens.

Grabbing a croissant and a to-go cup of coffee, Marinette left her parents with a kiss to their cheeks and a wave before starting her daily walk to school.

As she started up the stairs at the school’s entrance, she was met with the one person who would sour her day.

Lila.

“Well, if it isn’t Mari-brat,” the Italian vixen sneered.

“What do you want, _Lie-la_?” Marinette asked as she continued up the front steps, keeping her eyes to the front.

“What I want is for you to go down in flames,” the brunette said in a sing-song voice as she walked beside the secret heroine. “Are you ready to give up yet?”

At the top of the stairs, the designer spun to face her nemesis, blue eyes flashing like lightning. “Let me tell you something,” she growled. “I do not make deals with  _ liars,  _ and I never give up easily.”

“Oh,” the fake fox said coyly, “but you will. I’ve already won, you know. You just haven’t realized it yet.”

With a flick of her brown locks, Lila sauntered away, ready to claim her next victim.

Marinette glared after her, wishing with all of her might that the bitch would finally get caught up in her web of lies. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

“ **_Another masterful attempt ends with disaster_ ** **,** ” she muttered, bringing a hand to her face to give it a slight rub. “ **_Pour another cup of coffee and watch it all crash and burn_ ** ,” she continued as she headed to the locker room, ready to just get the day over with.

Opening the door and finding the room empty, the designer kept singing under her breath as she reached her locker and gathered her belongings for the day. “ **_It’s a puzzle, it's a maze. I tried to steer through it a million ways, but each day’s another wrong turn_ ** **,** ” she took another deep breath as she closed the locker door. The secret heroine felt her Kwami pat her through her purse on her hip in reassurance.

“ **_Does anybody have a map, anybody maybe happen to know how the hell to do this? I don’t know if you can tell, but this is me just pretending to know_ ** ,” Marinette sang slightly louder, looking around as she left the locker room and crossed the courtyard, confident now that no one was paying attention to her. “ **_So where’s the map? I need a clue, ‘cause the scary truth is I’m flying blind… I’m flying blind... I’m flying blind, and I’m making this up as I go..._ ** ”

Reaching her classroom, Marinette discovered it to be empty. ' _Just as well,_ ' she thought, setting her bags down and pulling out her tablet, sketchbook, phone, and earbuds. ‘ _It's bound to be a long day._ '

Feeling inspired, she sat down and opened up her sketchbook to an empty page. She then pulled up the ‘Dear Evan Hansen’ soundtrack on her phone, plugged in her earbuds, and set to work.


	2. Waving Through A Window

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 🎵“When you’ve fallen in a forest, and there’s nobody around, do you ever really crash or even make a sound?”🎵

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special Thank You to [ Khanofallorcs](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Khanofallorcs/pseuds/Khanofallorcs) of being an Awesome Beta!

As he climbed the stairs to the entrance of his classroom, Adrien's ears picked up the sound of a sweet voice singing softly.

" **_Step out, step out of the sun because you learned, because you learned_ ** ."

'Whoever it is that's singing has a fantastic voice,' the blond mused as he quietly approached the classroom, not wanting to disturb the mysterious, obviously female vocalist. He peered through the window, his eyebrows raising to his hairline as he recognized his classmate.

" **_On the outside always looking in, will I ever be more than I've always been? 'Cause I'm tap, tap, tapping on the glass. Waving through a window_ ** ."

Inside the room was one Marinette Dupain-Cheng, singing along to a song coming through her headphones as she sketched out a new design, the music providing a cathartic beat.

**_"I tried to speak but nobody would hear, so I wait around for an answer to appear,"_ ** she continued softly, adding more lines to the design. “ **_While I’m watch, watch, watching people pass, waving through a window…”_ **

  
  


She was so engrossed in both the song and the dress she was designing that she never took notice of the model walking in and putting his bag down.

The dark-haired girl sighed, focused on sketching the line of the collar just right. “ **_Can anybody see, is anybody waving back at me?_ ** ” She sang lowly. 

  
  


"Wow, Marinette, I never knew you had such a pretty singing voice," Adrien complimented, really impressed with how talented his friend was.

Designer, seamstress, baker, artist, singer. Was there anything that Marinette couldn't do?

Apparently having a conversation was one.

"Gah!" Marinette yelped as she finally noticed that she was no longer alone. Clutching at her chest as she pulled her headphones from her ears, Marinette looked up wide-eyed at her intruder.

"A-Adrien," the dark-haired girl gasped out, trying to catch her breath from her scare. "You s-startled me!"

"I'm sorry, Marinette," the young man gave a low, friendly chuckle as he apologized. "I was complimenting you on your singing. You have a beautiful voice."

She gaped at him for a moment, sapphire eyes blown wide

"She sure does!" an energetic Alya piped in as she walked through the classroom door with Nino. She climbed the steps to her seat, pausing to give a parting kiss on the cheek to her boyfriend. "You should hear her when we're all rockin' out to Clara Nightingale's songs, Sunshine."

"Alya-a-a-a," the designer whined before planting her head face-first on her sketchbook, deciding to hide her embarrassment in her crossed arms on top of her desk, covering her sketchbook. 

“So,” began the blogger, totally pretending to ignore her best friend’s embarrassment. “Are you guys excited about the big project?”

“Yeah, dudes, it's gonna be awesome!” Nino said in his chill way. 

“I just hope that I get paired with a good partner,” Adrien said with a grin.

“Me too,” came a muffled answer from Marinette, still hiding in the nest of her arms.

Alya tapped her fingers to her chin in thought. “Wouldn’t it be interesting if the two of you wound up as partners?” She asked thoughtfully, pointing to the pair of friends, and causing the dark-haired girl to sit upright abruptly with a glare in her direction.

“Why would it be interesting?” The oblivious blond model questioned. “I think Marinette and I would be great partners!”

“Oh?” The auburn-haired girl inquired with a smirk, mischief gleaming in her eyes. She adjusted her glasses in speculation and once again pretended to ignore the beet-red face of the girl sitting next to her. ”How so?”

“Well...” Adrien trailed off in thought before coming to an obvious conclusion. “She’s a designer, and I’m a model. It’s a perfect match, don’t you think?”

A squeak that came from Marinette’s direction went ignored once more.

As was a hidden murderous glare from a pair of olive eyes who climbed the stairs to go to her seat behind them.

At that moment, the rest of the class had filed in, and Ms. Bustier walked in, signaling the beginning of the lesson.

"Good morning, everyone," she began. "Today, we're going to pair up for an art project. The topics cannot be repeated, however, you may be able to pair up with a group that will compliment your group's project. The pairs will be assigned and they will be final."

She began to read off the pairs. Alya was with Nino, Max was with Kim, etc. "And finally, Adrien and Marinette." She turned her full attention back to her students. "You will have two weeks to complete your projects."

"Ms. Bustier! "called a voice from the back row.

"Yes, Lila?" the red-haired woman sighed.

The vixen's olive eyes gleamed with mischief and malice. "My partner and I are going to do our project on fashion," she declared.

"WHAT!?" exclaimed the class, loudest of all Marinette, Adrien, and Nathaniel, Lila's partner.

"I did not agree to this!" the normally quiet red-haired boy seethed in agitation.

"We'll be fine," the smarmy Italian soothed. "You’re a wonderful artist, and I am a model, remember?"

The rest of their conversation got lost in the cacophony, as it seemed obvious to everyone  _ who _ should’ve been able to choose fashion as their topic. 

They also all had an opinion on that matter.

“Alright everyone, settle down!” Ms. Bustier called out, trying to regain the attention of her students. “Now please, we need to finish this up so that we can continue to our next lesson. Juleka, what topic did you and Rose decide on?” 

Adrien scowled at the fake fox, watching as she glared back at him in triumph in her attempt to screw him and Marinette over. He turned away from her, feeling nauseous at the thought of that pathological liar, and tuned out the rest of his classmates, deciding instead to place his focus on his partner. Spying the earbuds still lying on her desk, the model’s eyes went wide as a wild idea came to him,

"Hey, Marinette," he began tentatively "would you be okay with singing in public?"

The blue-eyed girl shook herself from her thoughts of maybe giving her red-haired classmate some designing advice before she glanced at her partner with equally wide eyes. "Maybe," she said quietly, biting her lip in a way that drew the blond’s eye unintentionally. "What do you have in mind?"

Pulling his gaze away from her swollen lip took much more effort than he thought possible, but Adrien shook his head to clear his mind and gather his thoughts. "How about we do our project on music. I could play the piano, maybe a little guitar. You could sing? Maybe include any other instruments that you know how to play?"

He could see the gears turning in her head, taking his idea and looking at it from every angle. "Well, I know some notes on the flute.." she started, then wrinkled her nose in distaste, "but I'm not very good with it. I'm actually better with a violin, but it's been ages since I picked one up."

“You play the violin? I never knew that!” Adrien said, amazed at the talented girl before him. “If we could group up with the group who decides to do videography, maybe we could put together a music video?" He asked thoughtfully.

"That is an amazing idea!" she exclaimed. “Let’s do it!”

With a smile beaming on his face, the model raised his hand to get the teacher’s attention. “Ms. Bustier?”

“Yes, Adrien?”

“May my partner and I work with whoever chooses Videography? We’d like to do our project on music, and had some ideas.”

“I’m okay with it if that group is,” she answered with a smile. “Why don’t you ask them yourselves? Alya? Nino?”

With surprised wide eyes, the pair of them turned to look at their best friends. Clearing his throat, Adrien tried to broach the subject. “So….”

“Dude, you don’t even have to ask!” Nino smirked with a fist bump to his best bro. “We’ve overheard your plan and we’re totally in! This project sounds off the hook!”

“So… what song are you guys planning to cover?” The junior journalist inquired with a mischievous look. 

Green eyes met blue, as the two of them shrugged. 

“We...haven’t really discussed that yet,” Marinette answered, eyes lowered and fingers fidgeting with the edges of her sketchbook.

“We hope to have an answer soon,” Adrien filled in. 

“Maybe we should meet after school?” Alya suggested.

The designer’s face fell further at that comment. “I have to help out at the bakery after school today,” she grumbled, lifting her eyes to the rest of the group. “A big order came in, and…”

“Hey, it’s okay, Marinette,” Adrien said, placing a hand on one of hers to comfort her. “I just remembered that I do have a fencing lesson after school. Maybe we could meet up at the bakery after I get done, then head over to my house? I… can’t exactly move a piano too easily,” he chuckled as he lifted his right hand to rub at the back of his neck.

Gratitude glittered in her cerulean eyes as Marinette faced the blond. “Thank you,” she said. “That sounds perfect.”

“That  _ does  _ sound perfect! When do we meet up?” a voice that didn’t belong to the group chimed in, startling the four of them.

The group turned to face one Lila Rossi sporting a sickeningly sweet look on her face. 

“Excuse me?” Alya asked with genuine confusion. “Why would you be coming with us, Lila?”

Batting her eyes, the Italian answered, “Why, Adrien and I have a study date later,  _ don't we,  _ Adrien _?” _

“Uh, no. We don’t,” the model said with a deadpan voice and an expression to match, making the bespeckled pair raise an eyebrow at their sunshine friend. “Also, this would be a closed practice, Lila. Wouldn’t want to spoil the surprise.”

“Besides,” Marinette chimed in with a barely contained sneer that  _ really _ took her friends off guard, “don’t you have your  _ own _ project to work on? You know… with  _ your  _ partner?”

Seeing as there was no way around it, Lila lifted her chin with a sniff, turned on her heel, and walked off.

“Man, what is with her?” Nino asked quietly. 

“Really,” Alya agreed. “Who just  _ invites _ themselves to someone else’s group project like that?”

“Lila,” both Adrien and Marinette simultaneously answered together, causing their friends to blink at them.

“I also really don't want her in my room again,” Adrien emphasized. “The last time that she was there really skeeved me out.”

“Why, dude? If you don’t mind me asking, that is”. Nino asked politely.

_ “Well… she lied to get into my house. Lied to me, to Gorilla, and to Nathalie. She also lied to my father to get Gorilla and Nathalie into trouble,” the model listed, ticking off his fingers as he went. “She also shamelessly searched my room once we got in there, and forced me to take a picture with her, which she then sent to all of my female contacts, causing Kagami to get akumatized.” _

That was what the sunshine child  _ wanted _ to say.

But he was supposed to be taking the high road, so he just pushed down his feelings about it.

It wasn’t as if anyone other than Marinette would believe him anyway. They were all wrapped around Lila’s fingers.

Even his father, though he wasn’t sure how that happened.

What he wound up saying instead with a shudder was: “I don't know, man. It just did, that’s all.”

He then heard something coming out of Marinette’s earbuds, making him realize that when he surprised her earlier that she had never actually shut off her music.

**_“Did I even make a sound?_ **

**_Did I even make a sound?_ **

**_It's like I never made a sound_ **

**_Will I ever make a sound?”_ **

“Dude…” Nino breathed out just as the bell rang to switch classes. ”That was  _ so _ not cool.”

“Yeah, man,” Adrien said, packing up his books with a grimace. “I know.”

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Are you interested in reading and writing fanfiction, making fanart or cosplaying/roleplaying for Miraculous? Then the [ the Miraculous Fanworks Discord Server ](https://discord.gg/mlfanworks) is the place for you! Come and join over 1000 other fans as we share, discuss, and have a general good time bonding over the Fandom we all love!


	3. For Forever

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 🎵“And we talk and take in the view. We just talk and take in the view.”🎵

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It’s the Christmas season, and I work retail. So have a chapter early, because it’s my last day off until the Holiday!
> 
> Again, a special Thank You to [ Khanofallorcs](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Khanofallorcs/pseuds/Khanofallorcs) for being an Awesome Beta!

Later that afternoon, Adrien was engulfed in the scent of fresh baked goods as he walked into Tom & Sabine’s Boulangerie-Patisserie. He closed his eyes and hummed as he inhaled, the heavenly scent of cinnamon, sugar, vanilla, and yeast making him pause just inside the door.

He opened his eyes, his cheeks reddening slightly when he spied the amused look on Sabine’s face as she finished ringing up the customer in front of her. 

“Hello, Adrien,” she greeted the slightly embarrassed boy with a knowing smile. “It's good to see you again. Marinette is still giving us a hand, but you can head on to the back if you’d like.” 

“Erm, thank you, Mrs. Cheng,” the blond answered, clearing his throat and pushing aside his feeling of self-consciousness. There was nothing for him to be awkward about, he reasoned, as he loved the smell that the place exuded.

Slipping behind the counter, Adrien smiled as he entered the kitchen area, a feeling of excitement filling him to the brim and nearly overwhelming him with its force.

He spied his project partner almost immediately and noticed that she was deep in concentration as she skillfully decorated a batch of cupcakes. Her movements were graceful, almost choreographed in a neat little ballet as she moved the piping bag from one pastry to the next. 

Then he noticed that her earbuds are firmly planted in her ears and that she’s singing again. 

_ “ _ **_And there he goes, racing toward the tallest tree._ **

**_From far across the yellow field I hear him calling, ‘follow me’._ **

**_There we go, wondering how the world might look from up so high_ ** _ ” _

Her voice captivated him like a siren from long ago legends calling to sailors on the sea. He felt rooted to the spot, just inside those kitchen doors. 

“ **_One foot after the other, one branch then to another. I climb higher and higher,_ ** _ ”  _ he heard the dark-haired girl vocalize in a soft voice, her eyes never moving from the task in front of her. “ **_I climb 'til the entire sun shines on my face.”_ **

She took a breath, stilled her movements, and closed her eyes for a moment. She still hadn't noticed her unexpected audience standing frozen on the threshold, too caught up in the emotions of the song playing in her ears.

_ “ _ **_And I suddenly feel the branch give way. I'm on the ground, my arm goes numb. I look around_ ** _ ,”  _ Marinette opened her eyes, playing out to the song lyrics, and startled a bit to see that she wasn’t as alone as she had thought.

“Please don't stop,” Adrien pleaded in a quiet voice, not wanting to break the reverie that the mood had caused. He moved closer towards her with his hands at his chest, palms pressed together in supplication. “Your voice is beautiful, and if singing makes you feel happy, then I don't want you to stop.”

She gaped at him for a moment, the apples of her cheeks turning a rosy hue under his peridot stare.

He liked her singing?  _ Adrien Agreste  _ LIKED her singing?

‘ **And everything’s okay...** ’ the song in her ears continued, the lyrics and the pleading look in the model’s eyes prompting her to take a breath and continue to sing.

_ “ _ **_All we see is sky for forever,_ ** _ ”  _ she started a little unsteadily but gained a little bit of confidence as she saw the delight light up those gemstone green irises. She smiled as she readjusted her grip on her icing bag, determined to get her work done now so that she could sing to the boy before her some more. “ **_We let the world pass by for forever. Buddy, you and I for forever this way, this way_ ** _ ”  _

She quickly got back into her rhythm, focused narrowed once more into creating perfect swirls of color onto the mini cakes set before her.

“ **_All we see is light_ ** _ ,” _ the designer belted as she got closer to finishing the task,  _ “ _ **_'cause the sun burns bright...We could be alright for forever this way…_ ** _ ” _

Neither one of them noticed that her audience had gained a few more members, as 

Nino and Alya stood back behind Adrien with Sabine and Tom listening from the doorway.

She inhaled deeply as she finished decorating the last cupcake, and closed her eyes briefly. “ **_Two friends,_ ** _ ”  _ she sang, then opened her eyes to look up to his gaze from under her long, inky lashes. “ **_True friends, on a perfect day…_ ** _ ”  _ she ended the song, really wishing that she could be more than friends with the boy standing before her, but resigned herself to the fact that friendship would have to be enough.

The blond beamed, blushing slightly at that last line, happy that the dark-haired girl before him thought that he was a true friend to her. 

“That was beautiful, Marinette,” Adrien said in a quiet, almost reverent voice. 

They were both startled from their shared moment by the applause created by their small audience.

“Sunshine’s right, girl,” Alya said as she came up to the designer and gave her a sideways squeeze.

“That was amazing, dudette!” Cheered Nino, giving her a thumbs up.

“You were wonderful, dear,” said Sabine, Tom nodding in agreement beside her as he left his spot to take care of a customer at the counter. “Since you're finished, you're free to go work on your project now,” she said as she headed back out towards the front counter.

“Thank you, Maman,” Marinette said to her gratefully as she pulled off her earbuds and tugged off her apron. Turning towards her friends, she said, “I just need to grab my backpack and violin. I’ll be right back.”

“Sure,” replied Adrien, answering for the others and not noticing their shared look. “By the way, Marinette, what is the album that the songs that you’ve been singing come from?”

Marinette blinked at him, puzzled for a moment before she realized that he didn’t know. 

“Oh! They’re from the play ‘Dear Evan Hansen’,” she explained, not noticing the concerned look that flashed across Alya’s face. “Why don't we listen to the soundtrack when we get to your house, Adrien? Maybe we could do a song from that?”

“Better yet,” interjected Nino, pulling the album up on his phone and showing it to the group. “We’ll start listening to it now while you grab your things.”

Marinette smiled. “Sounds good to me! Pick a good one, I know them all!”

The model sent her a warm smile that lit her up from inside. “Great!” He exclaimed, excitement becoming visible in his features. “Now go grab your things, I can’t wait to get started!”

“I’ll come with you,” Alya said as Marinette began to exit the room with a laugh. “I’ll give you a hand.”

“Okay,” the designer responded, voice still tinged with mirth, already halfway out of the kitchens and into the stairs leading to the family living area.

After the girls left, Nino turned towards the blond with a smirk. “Dude, what was that?” He asked teasingly.

“What was what?” Adrien asked, curiosity coloring his voice and his facial features.

The bespeckled boy groaned, “Come on, man! What’s with all of those looks that you were giving Marinette?”

“What are you talking about?” The model asked as his curiosity turned into confusion. “What looks?”

The DJ wanted to face-palm so bad that it hurt.

“Never mind, dude. Never mind,” he groaned, pressing track four from the album to pass the time.

They listened for a moment, enjoying the jaunty beat of the music, with Adrien already trying to imagine playing this song on his piano.

A few minutes later, they were both red in the face, mortified by the lyrics pouring through the speakers with Plagg silently cackling in his hiding spot underneath Adrien’s overshirt.

  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Are you interested in reading and writing fanfiction, making fanart or cosplaying/roleplaying for Miraculous? Then [ the Miraculous Fanworks Discord Server ](https://discord.gg/mlfanworks) is the place for you! Come and join over 1000 other fans as we share, discuss, and have a general good time bonding over the Fandom we all love!


	4. Sincerely, Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 🎵“All ya gotta do is just believe you can be who you want to be. Sincerely, Me.”🎵

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Holidays Everyone! I hope that you’ve all had a wonderfully happy, healthy and safe holiday.
> 
> Many of you were excited about this chapter, and personally, I am too! This is the longest chapter that i have written so far for YWBF, over 5,000 words! I hope that you all enjoy it!
> 
> Once again a special Thank You goes out to [ Khanofallorcs](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Khanofallorcs/pseuds/Khanofallorcs) for being an Awesome Beta!

“Girl, what is going on?” The Ladyblogger asked her best friend once they were sequestered in the latter’s attic bedroom.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about, Alya,” the designer said as she headed towards her closet, beginning her search for her violin.

“You know what I mean,” the bespectacled girl groused, grabbing Marinette's backpack and planting herself with it on the girl’s chaise. “You have certain musicals that you reference for certain occasions. Most of last month was ‘Hamilton’, the one before that it was ‘Wicked’, and you even dedicated the week before Halloween to ‘Little Shop of Horrors’! To be honest, I’m a little worried.”

The dark-haired girl blinked. She hadn’t realized just how predictable she was starting to become with her musical choices.

“I’m fine,” she sighed, as she extracted her prize from the back of her closet. She brushed the dust off of the dark case and opened it, quickly checking on the condition of the instrument lying within. Finding it to her satisfaction at the moment, she closed and latched the case, ready to begin the trek to Adrien’s house. Marinette then caught the unconvinced look on her best friend’s face. “Seriously, I’m okay. I just… have a lot on my mind,” she said in a quiet voice, not wholly convinced of her reason herself.

Alya stood up and placed a hand on the secret heroine’s shoulder. “You know you can talk to me, right?”

Marinette’s shoulders slumped for a moment before she forced herself to straighten them back up again. As much as she had wanted to confide in the blogger, she knew that she couldn’t. Not really, anyway.

Sometimes, being both Ladybug and the Guardian just  _ sucked. _

She gave her friend a small smile. “You’ll be the first to know,” she said, feeling a little queasy at the white lie that she had to tell. “Let’s not keep the boys waiting for too much longer,” she stated as she picked up her violin case and reached for her backpack.

As they walked back into the kitchen, the girls had noticed the reddened complexion and mortified looks of both boys and looked at one another in confusion. That is until Marinette heard some very familiar lyrics coming from Nino’s phone speakers.

“ **_I love my parents but each day's another fight_ **

**_If I stop smoking drugs_ **

**_Then everything might be alright_ **

**_Smoking drugs? (Just fix it!)_ **

**_If I stop smoking crack (Crack?!)_ ** ”

She then started to crack up laughing while the other three looked at her, one perplexed, one completely mortified, and one in fondness masked by embarrassment.

A certain blond model couldn’t remember when his Very Good Friend™ Marinette had ever looked more stunning than she did right then, her cheeks flushed with amusement. 

“Oh my goodness,” she gasped in between cackles, setting down her violin case and ignoring the mock glares from the males in front of her. “Did you hit shuffle by accident or something?”

“No,” Nino groaned, rubbing his face with his open palms, hoping to ease some of the heat that was radiating from his face. “I hit track four.”

“Why did you do that?” Asked Alya, looking on in confusion at her best friend as the dark-haired girl doubled over in laughter once more.

“All the best songs are on track four!” The boy exclaimed in an exasperated voice, grabbing at his cap. “I didn't know that it was gonna be… whatever the heck this is!”

“It is one of the best,” Marinette gasped as her laughter slowly subsided. “It’s the comic relief song in the show.” 

A light went off for Alya, the bespectacled girl grinning wildly at that information. “Is this  _ Sincerely Me _ ?” She asked earnestly and she quickly googled the lyrics for it on her phone. “I’ve seen a YouTube video of it and thought it was hysterical!”

Blue eyes sparkling with mirth, the designer replied, “It sure is!” She gave a little twirl before launching herself into the lyrics.

“ **_Dear Connor Murphy, Yes, I also miss our talks,_ ** ” she sang, pretending to act out a piece of the scene.“ **_Stop doing drugs just try to take deep breaths and go on walks._ ** ”

“ **_No_ ** ,” Alya filled in with her best deadpan voice.

“ **_I'm sending pictures of the most amazing_ ** **tees** **_,”_ ** the dark-haired girl pantomimed taking a photo as she improvised the lyrics in a teasing voice, making one Adrien Agreste suddenly feel a little warm.

_ What was happening to him? _

“ **_No_ ** ,” the blogger's serious facade was starting to crack.

**_“You'll be obsessed with all my_** **fashion** ** _expertise,”_** the designer continued, gently elbowing her friend in the side to further break the journalist’s composure. 

“ **_Absolutely not,”_ ** the hazel-eyed girl laughed, causing the boys to snort in amusement. 

“ **_Dude, I'm proud of you! Just keep pushing through!”_ ** She sang as she tugged down on the brim of Nino’s hat, then, in a bold move for her, reached over to pat Adrien’s shoulder **_. “You're turning around, I can see”_ ** Spinning away, she glanced over her shoulder and graced the blond with a wink, causing his cheeks to pink and his heart to thud louder.

Wait what? 

**_“Just wait and see!”_ ** Alya sang in echo.

**_“'Cause all that it takes is a little reinvention,”_ ** Marinette sang as she touched the journalist’s shoulder. She stepped away with a little flounce to her step to do the same to her DJ friend. “ **_It's easy to change if you give it your attention”_ **

Stepping in front of the model, she used all of her courage to grab both of his hands and look him square in the eyes with a smile, making his heart stutter again.  **_“All you gotta do is just believe you can be who you want to be.”_ ** She let go of his hands and took a half step back, but kept her smile and her blue topaz gaze upon him, hoping with all of her heart that he would see the love that she had for him there. **_“Sincerely, Me”_ **

**_“Adrien’s hot,”_ ** Nino teased, ad-libbing from the lyrics that were currently on his phone screen in his hand.

**_“What the hell!”_** Adrien sputtered, laughter coating his voice as he was brought back from his internal musings on just how blue Marinette’s eyes were.

He wasn’t entirely sure, but they looked the same color as Ladybug’s.

**_“My bad,”_ ** the DJ laughed, lifting his hands in surrender.

Alya then grabbed both of the dark-haired girl’s hands with a face-splitting grin and began to spin with her. “ ** _Dear Evan Hansen, Thanks for every note you send,”_** the Ladyblogger sang, a little off-key with laughter.

With mirth making her eyes sparkle, Marinette answered perfectly in tune with,  **_“Dear Connor Murphy, I'm just glad to be your friend”_ **

Adrien couldn’t help but grin and laugh at the spectacle his friends were making of themselves. He then realized that he just couldn’t seem to keep his gaze off of Marinette. Her normally shy demeanor seemed to melt away with every beat of the song as she sang it.

And he was finding it to be completely  _ mesmerizing. _

He was brought out of his musings by a clap on his back. “Hey, dude, you okay?” Nino asked quietly, so as to not draw attention from the girls before them.

With a quick shake of his head and hard blink, the blond turned to his best friend. “Yeah, man. I’m good,” he said with a reassuring smile, turning back to watch his blue-eyed friend. He also completely missed the exasperated expression that flooded his best friend’s features before Nino facepalmed using his signature red cap.

**_“Well anyway!”_ ** the bespectacled girl sang beside her as she grabbed her backpack.

**_“You're getting better every day,”_ ** Marinette sang as she turned to grab her violin case once more.

**_“I'm getting better every day,”_ ** Alya countered as she wandered back toward her boyfriend.

The group began to gather their things once more, readying to exit the kitchen area

**_“We're getting better every day,”_ ** both girls sang, giggling and making the boys begin to crack up with laughter. “ **_Hey hey hey hey!”_ **

**_“'Cause all that it takes is a little reinvention,”_ ** Adrien sang hesitantly as he held the door open for everyone, noting that it made the designer’s eyes light up in delight that he was joining in on the frivolity.

He wanted nothing more than to keep seeing that look on her face.

Wait, what?

**_“It's easy to change if you give it your attention,”_ ** Alya sang as she and Nino shared a look that the obvious sunshine child missed entirely, and that the designer ignored.

**_“All you gotta do is just believe you can be who you want to be,”_ ** Marinette sang as she brushed past the model, giving him a grin that made his chest feel light.

What the hell was happening to him?

Since when did he start feeling this way about his Very Good Friend™?

**_“Sincerely,”_ ** they all chorused as they rounded the counter, happy to note that there were no customers in the main area of the bakery.

**_“Miss you dearly,”_ ** Marinette sang as she went to kiss her parents goodbye while the rest of the group waved at them before heading for the Bakery’s door.

But Adrien was a little too preoccupied with internally freaking out, causing Nino to grab him by the bicep and tug him towards the door.

**_“Sincerely, Me,”_ ** Marinette sang, her voice a clear sound that the blond couldn’t help but smile goofily over, making their other friends smirk behind his back.

**_“Sincerely, Me,”_ ** Adrien sang once more as he held the door to his car open for his friends to climb into, turning his goofy smile into a grin. 

**_“Sincerely, Me,”_ ** Alya and Nino sang obnoxiously in unison as they slid into the car’s smooth leather seats, causing Marinette to laugh at them as she piled in as well with Adrien close behind her.

**_“Sincerely, Me,”_ ** the group finished in near unison, causing the four of them to nearly collapse from laughter after that. The Gorilla shook his head as he internally muttered, “teenagers”.

A short while later, the four friends found themselves getting settled into Adrien’s bedroom, with Nino, Alya, and Marinette making astonished noises as they watched Adrien’s piano rise from the floor, suitably impressed. 

“Dude, that never gets old,” Nino laughed, taking a camcorder out of his bag. 

Adrien rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. “Yeah...I forgot that I showed you that before.”

“It’s all good,” the bespectacled boy said in his laid back way. “Hey, Alya, do you want to keep your camera focused on Marinette or Adrien?”

The auburn-haired girl mulled over that for a bit as she took her camcorder out of her bag. 

Meanwhile, Marinette opened her violin case, removed the bow, and tested the tension in the hair. She tightened the screw of her bow slightly to adjust it to her preference, nodding to herself when she finally deemed it just right and applied some rosin. 

Adrien settled himself at his piano bench, watching his dark-haired friend’s progress with rapt attention. It was fascinating to him, the concentration which Marinette applied to the instrument was nearly the same as when she applied it to her designs.

“Do you need help with tuning, Marinette?” He asked as she lifted the instrument out of its confinement.

The designer startled a moment before gracing the blond with a smile. “Sure, would you please give me an A 440?” She requested.

“Absolutely,” he said as he moved to press the correct key on the piano.

Marinette frowned, confused for a moment before asking, “Could you play that note again please?”

“Okay,” Adrien said, doing what was requested of him, but he was also confused. Marinette never once touched her tuning pegs before she had asked him to play the note the second time, and she was still frowning. “Is everything alright?” He asked, feeling nervous for some reason. 

“I’m fine,” she said, blinking up at him with the beginnings of a blush starting to spread across her face. “But...well...when was the last time that your piano was tuned?” 

It was the blond’s turn to blink at the blue-eyed girl. “Uh… last week, I think?” Adrien guessed, his hand finding the back of his neck in a familiar gesture. “Why do you ask?”

Marinette flushed a little darker. “Well… it sounds a little out of tune…” she said, fiddling with her bow.

Adrien blinked again. “It does?” He asked incredulously.

“...yeah…”

“Whoa, hold up,” Nino interjected, moving the camera slightly away from his face. He and Alya had started recording them without them noticing. “Marinette, dudette, how do you know that my dude’s piano is out of tune?” He asked, trying to clarify the situation.

The secret heroine’s complexion was dangerously close to matching her super suit at this point. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, then opened them to face the people around her. “I’m about to tell you guys a secret that I’ve never shared before, but I guess it’s about time that I finally air it out.”

“What is it, girl?” Asked the Ladyblogger, ready for the latest scoop as always.

Marinette let out a sigh of resignation as she finally revealed one of her many secrets.

“I have perfect pitch.”

Adrien, Nino, and Alya all blinked in surprise at the bomb that Marinette dropped on them. The dark-haired girl fidgeted for a bit in silence while she waited for her friends to process the new information she had presented to them. 

“You do?!”

“That’s awesome!”

“Why didn’t you tell us before, girl?!”

“I didn't say anything before, because it could potentially cause me problems,” the designer sighed, setting her violin and bow aside on top of Adrien’s beautiful baby grand piano. “I don't want people asking me ‘what note is this’ all the time, or have music instructors down my back over a simple wrong note,” she said with distaste as a foul memory crept back to the forefront of her mind. 

She shook it off, wanting to be in the present more so than the past. 

Nino cocked his head to the side in thought, a memory of his own resurfacing. “Is that why you and Ms. Goleme used to butt heads constantly?” He asked, referring to their old music teacher back in elementary school.

Marinette groaned, holding her face in her hands.“Is it my fault that the old bat really couldn’t tell that her piano was two and a half steps out of tune, and refused to have the damn thing checked?” She said with an exasperated voice that was muffled by her fingers

Adrien winced, the thought of a piano being  _ that _ out of tune painful to his sensitive ears without witnessing it. “I hope that my piano isn’t quite that out of tune?” He asked teasingly, though his brows had furrowed in worry.

She lifted her face so quickly that she could have easily given herself whiplash. Her eyes widened, the ocean colored irises constricted in shock. “NO!” She blurted out quickly as her face burned red with embarrassment. She cleared her throat before trying again with a more… inside voice. “No, your fiano is pine...er, your piano is fine. It’s only a half step off. I’m sorry that I brought it up, but now I know that I should tune my violin to you, rather than to my ear.”

“I guess that would be best for now,” he conceded, rubbing the back of his neck. “At least until I have my piano check again.”

The dark-haired girl bobbed her head. “G-great,” she stammered out, giving the model a double thumbs up. “Sounds like a plan!”

Then another thought occurred to her, making her pause as she began to reach for her instrument. “I…” she started before clearing her throat. “I just realized that we never picked out our song… I mean, the song… that we were planning on performing?” She stammered out as she tugged on one of her pigtails, carefully trying to ignore the muffled snort coming from the direction of her best friend.

Adrien’s eyes widened, the thought finally processing through his mind as well. “You’re right, Marinette,” he said, standing up from the piano bench to cross over to his stereo system. He had downloaded the soundtrack of the play on the designer's recommendation, with her saying in a laughing voice  _ “the music seems to fit in well with a lot of everyday interactions.” _

“Should we listen from the beginning?” He asked, grabbing a remote control and flipping it into the air, showing off a little as he caught it. 

Blue eyes sparkling like diamonds glittered up at him from underneath dark, inky lashes. “That would be a very good place to start,” she said with a wry grin. “But let's skip over track four, okay?”

The blond chuckled, once more ignoring their friends as he gestured for the three of them to get comfortable. “Now  _ that _ sounds like a plan,” he said, barely catching the word M’lady on the tip of his tongue, which startled him.

Why did he just compare Marinette to Ladybug?

The girl in question sat down on the comfortable looking couch, but Alya and Nino hovered around them, getting as many good video shots of the pair of them as possible for their end of the project.

The model gingerly sat at the other end, fidgeting with the device in his hand as his thoughts began to drift.

_ ‘Then again,’  _ he wondered,  _ ‘there was just something about her that reminds me...’ _

No that couldn't be right. He had seen Marinette and Ladybug together multiple times…

Hadn’t he?

“Adrien?” 

The sound of her voice broke him out of his reverie, his peridot eyes snapping up to meet her blue topaz ones, locking him into place. Clearing his throat, he answered, “Yes?”

With gemstone eyes glittering in both fun and concern, she responded, “You didn't press play. Are you alright?” 

The model blinked, caught off guard by how preceptive the girl before him was. He smiled at the thought, and remembered to answer her this time. “Yeah… Yeah, I’m fine,” he said as he sat back into the cushions more fully, turning his head slightly so that he could try to hide the blush that he could feel creeping into his face. “Just… getting comfortable?” he said sheepishly while shooting a glare at a snickering Nino.

What was with his friends today?

Then again, he could turn that question unto himself

What was with  _ him  _ today?

And why did it seem as if Marinette was like a magnet drawing him in?

“There is one thing…” Marinette trailed off, making Adrien pause before he pressed the play button on the remote. 

He turned to her, giving her an encouraging look to continue. “What is it?” he asked.

She fidgeted with her fingers before she shot him a glance, her cheeks lightly dusted in a rosy hue. “There are two songs that have heavy romantic inclinations, and I don't think that they would... be appropriate for a class assignment.” 

“Hmm,” the blond hummed, tapping at his chin as he took that statement into consideration. “You night be right about that. Which songs are they? Should we skip them?” he asked as grabbed at his phone, intending to scroll through the album.

“We don't have to skip them,” the dark-haired girl replied with a giggle, the sound making Adrien feel warm in his chest. “They're very good songs, just… not something I would consider using for a school project.”

This made the model curious. He made a mental note to find out which songs they were later, but he had a pretty good guess already from glancing at the titles on the playlist.

“Okay then,” he said, turning himself so that he could face her fully. “Then maybe I should consult the expert of this play as to which songs that she might suggest?” Adrien asked her teasingly, leaning towards her with his phone in his hand. 

Marinette made a face at him before she looked over at the device, chewing her lip in thought once again and making him groan inwardly at the action. It was the second time that day that his attention was drawn to his pretty classmate’s lips. 

He really needed to stop looking at her like that.

He heard another snicker from Nino’s direction, and Adrien was so close to flipping off the DJ before he remembered that this whole thing was being recorded.

So the blond shot his best friend another glare instead.

“I think…,” the voice of the blue-eyed beauty (Beauty? Really, Agreste?) brought his focus back to her, making him notice that her face was cute when it was scrunched up in thought.

He blinked at that.

Wait, what?

Marinette cleared her throat, turning her gaze back to her partner. “I think I need to listen to them again. Also, would we want to make this into a duet?” she asked nervously, fidgeting with her fingers once more. “I mean, I don't mind singing solo, but you have a great voice too…” she trailed off, deciding that she should quit talking before she started to ramble.

It was Adrien’s turn once more to have his face turn rosy. He lifted his hand to rub at the back of his neck bashfully. ”You really think so?” he asked, watching his dark-haired friend nod enthusiastically, making him smile. “Well, let’s get to listening so we can make a decision!” he announced, finally pressing the button on the remote. 

The pair sat and listened, making comments and notations as the soundtrack played. They made an agreement after listening to “Disappear” that any song that had dialog in it would still be considered, but a transition would have to be put into the piece to make it flow better. 

Soon the album was finished, and the partners came to an agreement. If the decision was for a solo piece, then Marinette would sing “Waving Through a Window”, and if they instead decided to do a duet, the pair would perform “You Will Be Found”.

Adrien went to print off the sheet music for the two pieces, while Marinette went back over to his piano. She experimentally pressed down on a few keys individually, trying to determine just how off the model’s piano really was before she moved to pick up her violin. Ignoring her shadow in the form of Alya, she deftly twisted the tuning pegs, plucking at her strings until the instrument was in tune with its massive stringed-percussive counterpart. She then placed her violin under her chin to go through a few quick warm up scales as she waited for her partner to return.

“Wow, you really do know how to play that, don’t you?” the blogger asked, her voice colored with surprise and a little awe as she watched the designer run through some basic scales in first and second position.

That made the designer stop in the middle of an E flat major scale. “You didn't believe me when I said that I could play?” she asked with an impassive look on her face, but her voice held a slight edge of hurt in it. 

“It's not that,” Alya said, waving off the dark-haired girl’s attitude flippantly. “It's just that I’ve never really associated you with playing an instrument before, ya know?”

Marinette furrowed her brows in confusion. “Why? Is it really that hard to believe that I could do something other than designing clothes?” she asked with an indignant tone.

“Well…” the auburn-haired girl hesitated, not really sure how to put her thoughts into words. “Kinda? It’s just … I’ve never seen you do it before.”

“I don’t think anyone has,” said Adrien as he walked back into his room, sheet music in hand and Nino in tow, making the girls cringe a bit at being eavesdropped on. Seeing their reactions, he put up his hands in mock surrender. “Don't worry, I only overheard something about Marinette doing something other than designing. I'm sure that just like anyone else in this room, there's more to her than meets the eye.”

“Dude, did you just quote ‘Transformers’?” Asked Nino, trying to break the tension with a lame joke.

Adrien glared at him, feeling a bit put out, until he heard a sound akin to the most beautiful music. 

He turned towards the noise, and realized that it was Marinette, laughing.

The light was coming through the window, and it illuminated her in such a way that she appeared to be as ethereal as an angel. Between that and the sound of her laughter, he couldn’t help but to stare at her beauty for a moment.

And he completely missed the way that his other two friends shot a look at each other over their respective viewfinders in exasperation at the blond’s expression.

Alya turned to her boyfriend, and mouthed silently. “Really?”

Nino just shook his head and rolled his eyes, then gave his best bro a nudge in the side.

The blond shot his friend yet another glare, before he realized that he was staring, and this time he was caught on film by not one, but two cameras.

Face turning scarlet, the model turned and coughed, rubbing the back of his neck while making a motion towards his piano. “So.. uh.. shall we?” He asked, wishing that he didn't have to interrupt the sound of joy coming from his dark-haired friend.

With her laughter finally subsiding, Marinette moved to pick up her violin and bow once more. “We shall,” she replied, the glee still shining brightly in her gemstone eyes as she placed the stringed instrument under her chin, bow at the ready.

Adrien took his place at the piano bench once more, and looked over to his pretty project partner. “Would you like to play something for a warm up?” He asked with a small smile.

Returning his smile, the designer asked, “Would you happen to know Pachelbel's canon in D?”

Green eyes blinked before the blond answered, “Uh...yes? But don't you need the sheet music for it?”

“Don't need to,” Marinette said with a smirk, tapping the back of her bow to her temple and making Adrien feel as if he was experiencing déjà vu. “I have it memorized. It’s one of my favorite warmup pieces.”

“Really?” He asked, staring at her in wonder. “I’ve never thought about using it as a warmup piece, but the song is beautiful,” he said as he pulled up the sheet music for it.

‘ _ This girl is truly amazing,” _ he thought after he got settled, waiting for her nod to begin.

Soon, the soothing sounds of the music began to weave itself amongst the group, entrancing the pair that were holding the cameras as their friends got immersed in the music. A moment of silence ensued after the last note drifted off.

Nino was the first to react. “Wow,” he whispered reverently, lowering his camcorder slightly.

“That was gorgeous,” Alya said softly, also not wanting to break the mood as she wiped a tear from her eye.

“It really was,” the model murmured, his mind no longer on the music.

Marinette cleared her throat, the apples of her cheeks taking on a rosy hue. “S-should we s-start with the new pieces?” She stammered, fidgeting with her bow a little nervously.

They soon quickly realized that the designer would need a music stand for her sheet music, and so, with a smile and a shrug she put her violin away.

Instead, Adrien pulled up the sheets for “Waving Through a Window”, and practically begged his blue-eyed friend to perform it with him. 

She rolled her eyes, but nodded, accepting that it might be inevitable that she would sing this song by herself if it was something that they decided to do.

As the blond played the opening notes, Marinette closed her eyes, giving herself a moment to step into the role of Evan Hansen. She let the fictional boy’s anxieties mix with her own, then took a deep breath when her turn to begin came in the musical score. “ **_I’ve learned to slam on the brake…_ ** ” she sang in a clear, strong voice perfectly in tune with the model’s piano.

She opened her eyes and continued on, even acting out some of the musical cues, waving her hands and pulling on her pigtails when she needed to.

Her performance captivated her audience, the two behind the cameras never realizing just how  _ good _ Marinette was at this sort of thing, as they had always seen her behind the scenes more so than taking center stage. All Adrien wanted to do was watch, but since he was also performing, he could only watch bits and pieces from the corner of his eye in between sight reading the sheet music.

When the pair finally finished their performance, Marinette leaned as heavily as she dared against the piano, trying to catch her breath.

“Wow, that looked like it took a lot out of you,” Alya said in awe once again, keeping her camera firmly on her best friend.

“It can,” said Marinette breathlessly as she walked over to her school bag, pulling out a bottle of water. “To be honest, performing can be exhausting.” She said after she had gulped down a few swallows.

Adrien tilted his head in thought, the look on his face almost resembling that of a curious kitten.“Is that why you don't really play the violin anymore?” He asked in a quiet voice.

“Honestly, I still play,” the dark-haired girl said with a quiet huff. “Just...not very frequently or when anyone can hear me….” She trailed off, fidgeting a little with her water bottle.

The blond stood up and walked over to her, ignoring the cameras still focused on the two of them as he reached out to lay a hand on her shoulder. She looked up at him, and her cerulean irises got caught up in his verdant green gaze. They stood there in silence for a moment before the model smiled down at her. “I hope that when this project is over that you and I could play together more often?” He asked, rubbing the back of his neck with his free hand, feeling nervous but not knowing why.

Blinking up at him, the designer returned his smile, reaching up to place her hand on top of his. “I’d like that,” she said shyly, missing the way that Alya and Nino were quietly celebrating in the background.

When it was time for his friends to go their separate ways, Adrien walked them out, then turned to go back to his room. Walking over the threshold, he noticed a change in the atmosphere. The room seemed colder, and more empty than it was before.

The little cat-like creature shot out of his hiding place from Adrien’s school bag once the coast was clear. “I thought that they would never leave,” Plagg complained in a nasally voice as he flew over to his hidden cheese stash.

The model just shook his head as he went to sit on the couch, and closed his eyes for just a moment. 

He was instantly transported back to just a few hours ago, reliving memories of having fun with his friends. He smiled as he thought of how silly Alya and Nino were back at the bakery, of how Marinette laughed at their antics, how her smile had lit him up, the touch of her hand on his shoulder like a warm blanket covering him, her voice as she sang...

Adrien’s eyes shot open and he sat up quickly, gasping as he came to a realization. 

Nearby, his Kwami heard the commotion and quickly flew to his Chosen’s side. “Kid? You okay?” 

The blond took a few deep gulping breaths, his eyes staring out the window, but did not see what was there.

In his mind, he saw blue topaz eyes, hair as dark as midnight…

But it wasn’t Ladybug.

“Adrien!” Plagg raised his voice, making it more grating in the process. “Kid, are you alright?”

This noise finally knocked the model out of his stupor. Shaking his head slightly to shift the fog out of his brain, he turned to his cat-like friend and said in a quiet voice:

“Plagg… I think I’m in love with Marinette.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Are you interested in reading and writing fanfiction, making fanart or cosplaying/roleplaying for Miraculous? Then [ the Miraculous Fanworks Discord Server ](https://discord.gg/mlfanworks) is the place for you! Come and join over 1000 other fans as we share, discuss, and have a general good time bonding over the Fandom we all love!


	5. Requiem

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 🎵”I will sing no requiem tonight.”🎵

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy New Year! I hope that you all had a very happy, healthy and safe holiday!
> 
> Again, special thanks to [ Khanofallorcs](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Khanofallorcs/pseuds/Khanofallorcs) for being an Awesome Beta!

“Plagg… I think I’m in love with Marinette,” Adrien said in an almost whisper, staring out of his large windows, but not seeing anything.

This caused the Kwami to freeze, mouth open to bite off a large chunk of the Camembert in his paws. 

Plagg knew this day was coming… the day that his holder would finally get his head out of his ass and admit that he was in love with Tikki’s Chosen’s civilian identity.

It didn't mean that he couldn’t have at least a little fun at his Chosen’s expense.

He was the embodiment of Chaos and Destruction after all. 

“I don’t get enough cheese for this,” the Kwami muttered as he floated towards Adrien, taking in the faraway look in the blond’s green eyes. The cat-like being gave a small smirk, knowing that the boy was about to have his mind explode in the not so near future.

“So you’ve finally realized that there is more than one type of cheese, huh?” Plagg commented with a teasing edge to his nasally voice.

That broke the model out of his stupor. 

Shooting him a glare, Adrien muttered a “shut up, Plagg,” before looking away in embarrassment, making the Kwami cackle with glee. 

“So, now what?” The cat-like creature asked once his laughter had subsided.

The blond glanced up at his little friend, thoroughly confused. “What do you mean, ‘now what’? I just found out that I’m in love with not one, but two amazing girls! I have no idea how to handle this sort of thing!” Adrien exclaimed as he ran his fingers through his hair, eyes closed and feeling exasperated beyond belief.

Plagg looked at him with all of the haughty wisdom that a millennia old being could muster. “Look, Kid, you’ve got a choice in the matter. You can continue to pine after the one girl whose identity you don't know, who always rejected you for someone else…” he trailed off, letting that sink in for a moment. “Or, you could go after the girl who you know very well, and there might be a good chance that she likes you as well.”

“But she’s told me that she only sees me as a friend,” Adrien said dejectedly, opening his eyes to stare out the window again.

“You’ve also put her on the spot by asking her after she thoroughly embarrasses herself,” the Kwami replied, feeling the urge to facepalm. “I really don't get enough cheese for this,” he muttered quietly as he steeled his resolve. His Chosen was so dense! “She might have denied her feelings to save face.”

Blinking at the thought, the model’s eye began to brighten with hope. “Do you really think that Marinette would like me back?” He asked. 

The god-like creature shrugged, returning once more to his apathetic nature. “I dunno. I still say that cheese is a better option.”

Adrien rolled his eyes at that statement, but the smile on his face only grew. Spying the remote on his coffee table, he picked it up, having decided to listen to the soundtrack once more. He hoped that by listening it would help him to gain a little more insight on at least one of the dark-haired girls that his heart belonged to.

* * *

  
  


“Oh, Tikki! Today was was wonderful!” Marinette sighed when they arrived back into the privacy of her room. She sat on her desk chair and gave it a spin, making happy noises as the memories of the last few hours began a playback in her mind.

The ladybug Kwami phased out of her Chosen’s purse, twirling in the air in mutual enthusiasm. “It really seemed like it did, Marinette!” She exclaimed, happy that her Ladybug was happy, before barreling off in search of her cookie stash.

“It was just so amazing!” The dark-haired girl squealed, coming to a stop from her rotation in front of her computer. She woke it up, smiling dreamily at the collage of Adrien photos that were still a part of her screensaver. “He’s so amazing,” she murmured, getting lost in her daydreams as she stared at the photos once more.

Before the designer could get too caught up in her daydreams of her future relationship, the ringing of her phone had popped her little Adrien induced bubble. She shook herself free from her little delusion as she fumbled in her purse before she had finally found it. Glancing at the display, Marinette turned to her little red and black spotted friend. “Alya is calling.”

Tikki looked up from her chocolate chip cookie, confusion coloring her petite features. “I wonder why she's calling. You only just left her a little while ago.”

With brows furrowed, she turned back to the device in her hand. “Well, no time like the present to find out,” the designer said before she pressed the “accept” button on the screen. “Hello?”

“Hey, gurl,” said the Ladyblogger’s voice on the other end of the line. “Can we talk? I just found out something totally amazing that’s happened to Nathaniel.”

Sending another puzzled look to her Kwami, Marinette asked, “Did you hear this straight from Nathaniel?”

“Well…no, ” Alya said with a sheepish tone of voice. “But that doesn't mean that he won't confirm it later!”

The designer rolled her eyes, wishing that her friend on the other end of the line wasn’t such a gossip. Knowing that the blogger wouldn't give up until she shared her news, she gave her the go ahead to continue with a sigh.

“Okay, so Nathaniel and Lila were at the Louvre’s Musée des Arts Décoratifs today, looking at some of the fashion pieces that they have there, when they were approached by this famous art dealer by the name of Paul Kasmin...” 

Marinette just sighed as she unlocked her computer, already looking up which portion of what was being said was truth or lies.

* * *

  
  


Later that evening found Adrien sitting at the dining room table, twisting the napkin in his lap, as he anxiously awaited for his father to show up.

He had been scheduled to have dinner with the man that night, and he was looking forward to it. It had been a rather long time since he had sat down to eat with him.

Which made it all the more painful when he heard the familiar clinking of heels. Glancing up at the sound, he saw his father’s assistant walk over to him instead.

“He’s not coming, is he,” the blond asked with a low voice, his head bowing in disappointment.

Nathalie sighed, severely hating to break this news. “I’m sorry, Adrien,” she apologized in her professional sounding voice. “Your father - ”

“It doesn't matter,” Adrien cut her off with resignation heavily coloring his voice, not wanting to hear the excuse this time. He carefully placed the napkin from his lap onto the table and pushed away from his place setting. “May I please have dinner sent up to my room instead?” He requested civilly as waited for Nathalie to nod in consent before he walked silently to the door.

A thought crossed his mind before he reached it, a subtle blue-eyed reminder that made him smile a little, making him stop before he crossed the threshold. “Nathalie?” He asked as he turned to face her once more. “There's... one other thing…”

She blinked at him, looking up from her ever-present tablet. “What is it, Adrien?”

“Can you please look into finding another piano tuner? I just found out that mine is a half step off.”

Her brow furrowed. She clicked through her tablet, before coming to rest on an entry. “We just had your piano tuned last week. It shouldn’t have gotten out of tune this quickly,” she said before she made a note. “I’ll have it looked into.”

Face softening, the blond looked back at his part-time caregiver in gratitude. “Thank you, Nathalie. Have a good night,” he said as he turned to head back to his room.

As Adrien crossed the foyer to head for the stairs leading up to his room, he could feel the soft purr that his Kwami was emitting to soothe him. It comforted him, causing him to display a small smile on his face despite his apparent gloom. 

Once they were back in his room, Plagg flew out from his hiding spot in the blond’s white overshirt. “You okay, Kid?” He asked, worry evident in his voice.

The model let out a sigh as he collapsed back onto his couch. “Not really, but I’ll get over it,” he said dejectedly, tears starting to gather at the corners of his peridot colored eyes.

With a sigh of his own, the little god-like creature sat down on his Chosen’s knee. “Listen Kid, it's okay not to feel okay.” Plagg said while patting his paw on part of Adrien’s leg. “And your father being a dick? That's not okay.”

With a slightly watery smile, the blond lifted a hand to scratch his Kwami between his ears and said, “Thanks, Plagg.”

Stifling a purr, the cat-like being floated up from his perch, bringing himself to eye level with his holder. 

“Yeah, well, you're Chat Noir,” he said in a tsundere tone of voice. “You can't afford to get akumatized, ya know?” The Kwami flew off in search of his Camembert just as a knock sounded at the bedroom door.

“Still, thank you,” the blond said warmly as he stood up to go answer. He received his dinner, thanking the person who had brought it, and quietly went to set it down on his coffee table.

Soon after he was finished, Adrien turned to his cat-like friend. “Let’s go for a run,” he suggested, hiding behind a model smile.

Plagg threw a chunk of his precious cheese in the air before swallowing it whole. “Just say the words, Kid,” he said, knowing that his Chosen was still a mess from earlier, no matter how well he tried to hide it.

‘ _A run would do him good,’_ the Kwami thought in passing. ‘ _Maybe even help him find a solution.’_

“Plagg, claws out!”

* * *

Across the arrondissement, in a room atop a familiar bakery, another conversation was being had over the phone. 

“...so what do you think?” The bespectacled girl finished.

“Why are you telling me this, Alya?” Marinette asked, trying to keep the irritation and exhaustion out of her voice. She was staring down at the list of untruths that she had recorded, and was frustrated with the tone that this conversation has gone. 

“Listen,” Alya started with a frown that could be heard in her voice even from across the digital stratosphere. “I know that this sounds too good to be true, but Lila said-”

“Ugh, again with _Lie-la_ ,” Marinette muttered in a low voice, which was unfortunately heard this time by the blogger.

“And what is wrong with Lila?” The auburn-haired girl asked defensively, making Marinette want to grit her teeth at the tone.

“Oh… just that she lies with every breath that she takes!” The dark-haired girl said sarcastically as she rolled her eyes, grateful that this wasn’t a video call.

“Girl, you have to do something about that jealousy of yours!”

“JEALOUSY?!” Marinette practically screeched, her eyes going wide as she searched out her room for signs of her Kwami. Finding the little red being staring back at her from her spot on her desk, the designer cleared her throat, trying to calm herself down in the process. “This is the second time today with you accusing me of jealousy, Alya! What should I be jealous of, pray tell?”

“You’re always accusing Lila of being a liar, so why wouldn’t it be anything but jealousy?” The junior journalist said with an edge to her voice.

“I just don’t understand why you insist for me, your _best friend,_ to have proof of something being true when you never ask _Lila_ if she has any!” Marinette seethed, tears threatening to fall from her eyes.

It took her a moment to realize that it was deathly quiet on the other end of the line.

Marinette pulled the phone from her ear and looked at its display, shocked to see that Alya had hung up on her.

‘So much for the title of ‘best friend’,’ she thought as she set the phone down, the words that she had wanted to say tasting bitter on her tongue. ‘I wonder if we were even friends, after all.’

“Marinette? Are you okay?” A tiny voice spoke up nearby, trying to comfort her.

“I...I’m not sure Tikki,” the dark-haired girl finally conceded, tears starting to prick at the corners of her eyes. “Was Alya even my friend to begin with?” She asked, looking up to meet large eyes a few shades darker than her own.

“Oh, Marinette…,” the Kwami trailed off, feeling at a loss as to what to say as her holder shook her head.

“No,” the girl choked before she closed her eyes and took a deep, calming breath. She would not become one of Hawkmoth’s pawns, no matter how badly her heart was beginning to break.

**_“Why should I play this game of pretend?”_** She began to sing, hoping that she could get her emotions out while remaining calm. _**“Remembering through a secondhand sorrow?”**_

She opened her eyes and got up off of her chaise. _**“Such a great**_ **girl** _ **and wonderful friend,**_ ” she continued as she paced to the wall, stopping in front of one of the many pictures that she had of the two of them. _**“Oh, don't the tears just pour,”**_ she spat out, still feeling bitter. 

**_“I could curl up and hide in my room,”_ **Marinette continued as she turned away from the offending picture, glancing towards her loft bed. _**“There in my bed, still sobbing tomorrow...I could give in to all of the gloom.”**_

_‘And to Hawkmoth, but I don't have that luxury,’_ the thought cut like poison, but Marinette held firm. 

The young Guardian lowered her head, shaking it sadly with a despondent look on her face. _**“But tell me, tell me what for?”**_

She gave a nod to Tikki, a silent signal to be on the lookout for corrupt butterflies.

Marinette had some grievances to air.

She turned back to the pictures on her wall as the Kwami raced to phase through the skylight, the designer giving all of them a scathing glare. 

_**“Why should I have a heavy heart? Why should I start to break in pieces? Why should I go and fall apart for you?”** _The designer spat the questions out to the pictures’ subjects in a rapid-fire singsong voice, similar to what she had believed the actress who sang this part might’ve done onstage.

It absentmindedly crossed her mind that it never did cease to amaze her just how well the Dear Evan Hansen soundtrack translated to her every life.

Marinette threw her hands up in the air, spinning away once again from the wall. _ **“Why should I play the grieving girl and lie saying that I miss you and that my world has gone dark without your light?”**_

She turned back to the photographs and placed a hand on one of them, fingers curling underneath the edges, ready to pull it off of the wall.

_**“I will sing no requiem tonight.”** _

* * *

Chat Noir barreled out of Adrien Agreste’s bedroom window like there was a pack of dogs nipping at his heels, a heavy feeling in his chest as tears once again threatened to fall from his eyes. 

Adrien had mulled it over in his mind as he ate his tasteless dinner in his large, cold, lonely room that evening, that he didn't feel as if he were a blip on his father’s radar.

It was like the man only thought of his son as an object to be looked upon on certain occasions, then put away to collect dust until the next occasion warranted.

This felt like a never-ending cycle. Wash. Rinse. Repeat.

It made him feel sick, and Adrien knew that he couldn’t afford to attract corrupted butterflies. So with the silent promise of an extra wheel of cheese, the model called on his transformation to escape the desolate prison that he called home.

_**‘I gave you the world, you threw it away leaving these broken pieces behind you,’**_ the lyrics came unbidden to the forefront of his mind, perfectly fitting in with the mood that he felt. _**‘Everything wasted, nothing to say. So I can sing no requiem…’**_

‘ _Maybe Marinette was right with this play,’_ he thought absently, thinking back to memories made earlier in the day as he nimbly raced across the rooftops of Paris, the dark-haired beauty a prominent fixture in his mind. ‘ _It does seem to resonate with everything that’s going on with my life.’_

_**‘Why should I have a heavy heart? Why should I say I'll keep you with me? Why should I go and fall apart for you?’** _

As he leaped from asphalt to tile to slate, he reflected that maybe it was time to stop getting his hopes up. His father would never change his ways…

**_‘Why should I play the grieving_ one _and lie, saying that I miss you and that my world has gone dark without your light?’_**

… and maybe he had never loved his son either.

_**‘I will sing no requiem tonight’** _

* * *

_**“'Cause when the villains fall, the kingdoms never weep,”**_ Marinette sang as she pulled the first picture of her with Alya off of the wall, then quickly moved onto the next one. _**“No one lights a candle to remember,”**_ more pictures were pulled off before she finally paused to look at them, wishing that the memories that she held weren’t so painful to look at. 

_**“No, no one mourns at all when they lay them down to sleep,”**_ Marinette growled as she flung them down onto her desk. 

_**“So, don't tell me that I didn't have it right,”**_ she turned away from the pile in disgust and started for the ladder to her loft. _**“Don't tell me that it wasn't black and white…”**_ she climbed up with purpose, flinging open her skylight to leap onto her balcony. 

_**“After all you put me through, don't say it wasn't true,”** _she managed to climb through the trapdoor quickly, planting her feet beneath her.

  
  


_**“That you were not the monster,”**_ she sang loudly as she raced to the balcony rail, not once noticing that she had unintentionally caught the attention of a passing feline-themed superhero, and had wilted once she had reached her destination. _ **“That I knew,”**_ she sang in a softer, more quiet voice, tears threatening to fall from her sapphire eyes.

_**“'Cause I cannot play the grieving girl and lie, saying that I miss you and that my world has gone dark,”**_ Marinette sang somewhat brokenly, tears burning her ocean colored eyes and coating the back of her throat. Her ragged breathing filled her ears to the point where she didn't know that a hero had landed behind her on her roof.

_**“I will sing no requiem tonight,”** _she sang in a soft voice. _**“Oh, oh, oh. Oh, oh.”**_

“Marinette? Are you okay?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just an FYI, Paul Kasmin died this past April.
> 
> Are you interested in reading and writing fanfiction, making fanart or cosplaying/roleplaying for Miraculous? Then [ the Miraculous Fanworks Discord Server ](https://discord.gg/mlfanworks) is the place for you! Come and join over 1000 other fans as we share, discuss, and have a general good time bonding over the Fandom we all love!


	6. If I Could Tell Her

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 🎵“He said there's nothing like your smile sort of subtle and perfect and real.”🎵

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My insomnia means that you guys get this chapter early! I hope that you enjoy a little MariChat
> 
> Again, a huge “Thank You” to [ Khanofallorcs](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Khanofallorcs/pseuds/Khanofallorcs) of being an absolutely Awesome Beta!

“Marinette? Are you okay?”

Startled, the girl in question turned towards the sound of the familiar male voice. Behind her was Chat Noir, crouched on her roof just like he had been, prior to their moment on the night that Glaciator attacked.

“Chat Noir? What are you doing here?” 

“I heard you singing, Purrincess,” the hero quipped, leaping from the roof to skillfully land on her railing in a crouch that would have made his namesake proud. “I must say, you have a purrfectly wonder-fur voice, you know.”

“...so I’ve been told…” she muttered as she turned back to face the Seine, hurt evident in her voice as she leaned against the rail heavily.

His faux ears pitched forward slightly, picking up on her tone.  _ ‘Something is bothering her,’  _ he deduced as he creeped forward along the rail, stopping only once he got close enough to her.  _ ‘I wonder what happened…’ _

“You never did answer my question,” he said once he had gotten settled in a comfortable position sitting on the cool iron. ”Are you okay?” he clarified once he saw the confused look on her face. 

Marinette's expression soured at the query, hating the reminder of her earlier ire. “I had a fight with my supposed best friend,” she growled out.

“‘Supposed’?” The black-clad hero questioned, his turn to have his face screwed up in confusion.

“Yep,” she said, popping the “p” as she stared out at the river. “She believed a liar over me, and then had the audacity to ask me for proof.”

The dark haired girl lowered her head before muttering, “she never asked ‘Lie-la’ for proof.”

“I… I’m sorry to hear that, Princess,” Chat Noir said in a consoling voice, leaning a little closer to her to press a comforting shoulder against hers. He was a bit alarmed at the fact that she and Alya were fighting, but maybe this was something that the two girls had to work out themselves. 

“It doesn’t matter,” the designer said dejectedly, closing her eyes before her tears could begin to fall. She turned her head to face him and opened her eyes to gain some comfort from his cat-like gaze. “I just wonder if she was even my friend at all.”

The hero tilted his head in confusion. “What makes you say that?” He asked, wanting clarification.

“Well… it just seemed that all Alya really wanted was the next big scoop,” she said, carefully weighing her words. “I'm not entirely sure that she even fact checks her sources. That, and she refused to listen when I tried to reason with her. I’m just worried that she's gonna wind up hurt when Lila’s promises all fall through.”

He blinked at her. “Do you really believe that?” He questioned softly.

“I do,” Marinette said with conviction. Wiping away her tears, she took a deep breath to compose herself. “Enough about my tales of woe. Why are you out tonight, Chat? There wasn't an akuma, was there?” she inquired, intending to turn the attention away from herself.

But that backfired a bit, as it only made the black-clad hero want to pay her more attention. 

Chat then turned to her, letting the vision of her with her hair loose and flowing in the breeze of the night sky burn into his memory. Her strength and compassion never failed to mesmerize him, making him fall deeper in love with her.

"You know, that Agreste kid once told me that you're amazing when I rescued him last. I'm beginning to see that," he said as leapt down from the railing and settled against it, leaning on his left arm against the iron, casually looking away from her.

"He said that? "she asked incredulously "Adrien?"

He chuckled softly. "Is that really so hard to believe? You turned his head, Princess."

"I think you're mistaken, Chaton." she said with a resigned sigh. "He only sees me as a friend."

The cat-themed hero turned his head to look at her. "I definitely think so, Marinette."

The raven haired girl gave him a look that showed her confusion. "Why?  How?"

With a smirk, he turned his face towards the sky, " **_Well.. he said, 'there's nothing like her smile. It's sort of subtle, and perfect, and... real,’_ ** " the disguised blond sang softly.

Giving her a side glance at her dumbstruck expression, he continued, " **_he said he never knew how wonderful that smile could make someone feel_ ** _. _ "

Turning his back to lean fully on the railing, Chat sighed, " **_but he kept it all inside his head. What he saw he left unsaid_ ** _.” _

Turning his head to look at her, he continued to explain, " **_And though he wanted to, he couldn't talk to you._ ** " He swallowed down his nerves, " **_He couldn't find the way, but he would always say._ ** "

_ 'Ok, keep it together, Agreste!' _ He thought to himself as he took a deep breath

" **_If I could tell her, tell her every thing I see. If I could tell her,_ ** " he nearly whispered, " **_how she's, everything to me.”_ **

The hero sighed, shifting his stance so that he was facing out towards her view of the Seine, a faraway look coloring his masked face. “ **_But we're a million worlds apart,”_ ** he sang just a little louder, trying to cover up how much his emotions wanted to overwhelm him. “ **_And I don't know how to even start... If I could tell her.”_ **

Marinette stood, shocked and amazed and a little confused. This sounded a little too familiar

Like it was right out of her current favorite play.

And as far as she knew, only one blond, green eyed boy knew it.

_'Ok, I'll play along,"_ she thought as she quickly hid her smirk. _'Let's see how far this goes.’_

Tucking a strand of midnight hair behind an ear, she asked with faked inquisitiveness and hesitation, "Did... did he say anything else?"

Cat ears perking up at the sound of her voice, Chat turned to her, green eyes wide in panic. " **_A-about you_ ** ?" he stuttered, not believing what was happening.

Was she... Was she really wondering...

Did she like Adrien-him then?

Turning away, pretending to be flustered, she babbled, "N-never mind, it doesn't really-"

" **_No, no, no_ ** ," he cut her off, not wanting to cause her to spiral. The cat-based hero gave a little cough, " **_No. There was just so many things I'm just trying to remember the best ones_ ** _! _ " he coughed again.

_'That was nearly verbatim that time,’_ the aspiring designer thought. _‘The only person with those kinds of memorization skills that I know of is... is...'_

Her blue eyes widened in realization. _'Oh my goodness! Don't tell me that I've been rejecting him for himself this whole time! Poor Kitty...'_

"He thought you looked really pretty in that indigo dress you designed," he kind of half sung, going a little off-book from the song lyrics he was remembering.

She tucked another errant hair behind her ear. "H-he did?" she asked, a faint blush dusting the apples of her cheeks.

"Yeah," he sighed. "And he wondered how you learned to work so fast, you must be so… organized?” He questioned with a confused look, obviously stretching for something that rhymed.

She giggled at him a bit at that, making him smile in return.

" ** _But he kept it all inside his head what he saw, he left unsaid…”_** he trailed off with a sigh and a lovesick look on his face directed at her.

He took one of her small, delicate looking hands into one of his larger ones, and directed his glittering gemstone gaze at it.  **_“If I could tell her, tell her everything I see. If I could tell her how she’s everything to me.”_ ** He sang quietly as he brought his eyes back up to meet hers, causing her breath to catch.

**_“But we’re a million worlds apart,”_ ** he let go of her hand, turning away from her slightly to lean his elbows against the railing once again.  **_“And I don’t know how to even start, if I could tell her.”_ ** He ran his claws through his hair, careful not to catch them on his faux ears. ****

" **_But what do you do when there is this great divide?_ ** " he asked as he lowered himself onto the floor, the tiles of her terrace cool against the heat of his skin through the suit.

" **_He just seems so far away,_ ** " she sang in sorrowful tones as she sat with her back leaning against his, her head in a comfortable spot between his shoulder blades.

" **_And what do you do when the distance is too wide_ ** **?** " He seemed to caterwaul, lifting his arms, spreading his hands in an expression of frustration before he curled into himself slightly.

Marinette dropped her head in her hands, her elbows on the knees of her criss-crossed legs. " **_It's like I don't know anything_ ** **,** " her voice came out in a muffled mumble through her fingers

Chat kept going as if he hadn't heard her. " **_And how do you say I love you_ ** **?** " he crooned, causing the dark haired beauty to jump with a start.

Marinette's eyes flashed wide at that.

She sucked in another breath sharply. _‘There was no way....’_

Chat turned towards her with another “ **_I love you_ ** "

_ ' ...that Adrien Chat Noir Agreste...' _

He crawled around her to face her, green eyes shining.  **“** **_I love you_ ** ," he mewed.

_ ' ... could love just plain ol' Marinette Dupain-Cheng.’ _

_ 'Could he?' _

Leaning his forehead against hers, the cat themed hero closed his eyes and whimpered in a broken voice, “ **_I love you_ ** **.** ”

Her breath caught on a gasp at the intensity of his words.

Hearing her, Chat leaned back slightly, opening his eyes but kept them cast down. They were as shattered looking as his voice had sounded moments before. “ **_But we’re a million worlds apart..._ ** ” his voice trailed off, as his gaze finally lifted to hers, finally focusing in on the love shining from her eyes.

This boy... he was going to be the death of her.

**“** **_I don’t know how I would even start_ ** ,” she sang to him with a small smile gracing her features, tears peeking out of the corners of her eyes. She leaned forward slightly, her sapphire gaze bouncing from his tsavorite green stare to his peach pink lips. “ **_If I could tell..._ ** you…,” she breathed out, eyelids lowered and lips slightly parted in a clear invitation.

His eyes widened slightly, pupils dilated in surprise and arousal before his own eyelids lowered as he leaned in closer, his lips barely brushing hers. “ **_If I could…”_ ** he breathed before he finally (FINALLY!) closed the minuscule distance between them and pressed their lips together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Are you interested in reading and writing fanfiction, making fanart or cosplaying/roleplaying for Miraculous? Then [ the Miraculous Fanworks Discord Server ](https://discord.gg/mlfanworks) is the place for you! Come and join over 1000 other fans as we share, discuss, and have a general good time bonding over the Fandom we all love!


	7. Disappear

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 🎵If you never get around to doing some remarkable thing  
> That doesn't mean that you're not worth remembering🎵

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Posting schedule? What posting schedule? My insomnia and lack of impulse control are to thank for posting this chapter a bit early!
> 
> Thank you to [ MarinetteAgresteBrand](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MarinetteAgresteBrand/pseuds/MarinetteAgresteBrand/works?fandom_id=582724&page=1) for helping me come up with some dialog for Alya that didn’t involve the word “Girl” lol.
> 
> Also, the ending of this chapter was to paraphrase a prompt by [ InkyCoffee](https://archiveofourown.org/users/InkyCoffee/pseuds/InkyCoffee) on [ the Miraculous Fanworks Discord Server ](https://discord.gg/mlfanworks). I’ll post the original prompt in the endnotes below
> 
> And once again, a huge “Thank You” to [ Khanofallorcs](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Khanofallorcs/pseuds/Khanofallorcs) of being an absolutely Awesome Beta!

Their kiss wasn’t perfect by any means. It was a brush of the lips, a tilt of the head, eyes closed, breath caught…

Okay, so it was perfect.

It lasted through a heartbeat, maybe two, before the two of them parted, silly grins etched onto their faces.

The pair kept close to one another, desperate to stay in this one moment forever.

Then, because,  _ of course _ , the Akuma alert went off. 

They separated slightly with a groan, both cursing Hawkbutt’s timing.

“I have to go,” Chat said in a mournful voice, reluctant to leave the arms of the wonderful person held within his embrace.

Marinette brushed her hand against his face, her thumb tracing the edge of his mask. She smiled as he nuzzled her palm, giving her a slow blink with love filled green cat eyes. “Please be careful out there, Chat,” she said quietly, her heart heavy with the knowledge that it was actually Adrien who would be the one throwing himself in front of the hits that were meant for her.

He smiled at her warmly, touched by the concern evident in her voice. “I’ll do my best, Princess,” the hero assured her, leaning in to kiss her forehead and nuzzle her hair one last time before he had to bound away. He soon disappeared from sight, his suit helping him blend with the evening shadows.

Marinette let out a sigh as she leaned against the railing for just a moment, just to catch her breath. So much had happened in the span of just that hour alone, that it was nearly overwhelming to her. Remembering the akuma, she put aside those thoughts and cautiously called out for her Kwami. “Tikki?”

The little embodiment of good luck zipped out of her hiding place from within her Chosen’s little rooftop garden. “I'm ready when you are, Marinette!” she said in a cheerful voice, happy that the young Guardian’s feelings for her partner were finally being reciprocated in the way that she had needed.

With determination in her blue gaze and a smirk across her lips, the heroine called upon her transformation.

Moments later, she found herself on a rooftop overlooking the site of where the akuma victim was wreaking havoc.

“I am Faded Past!” The akuma screeched, hair flailing wildly in the wind. “I was forgotten by those I love, so I will make everyone forget their loved ones too!”

“What seems to be the Akuma du jour today, M’Lady?” Chat Noir asked as he landed in a crouch on the rooftop beside her. 

Ladybug rolled her eyes with a snort at her partner’s attempt at humor, bringing her focus back on the victim causing havoc on the streets below them.

“Looks like a memory akuma this time, Kitty,” said the spotted heroine, standing up and unwrapping her yo-yo from around her waist. “Let’s be careful out there, okay?”

“You got it, Bugaboo.”

Two hours, one Lucky Charm (a  _ spork _ ? Really, Tikki?!) and one Cataclysm later, the akuma was purified, and the Miraculous cure had been cast.

Sitting on the ground before the heroes was a young woman with brunette hair, café au lait skin, and tired brown eyes that appeared to be lost in confusion. 

Chat Noir approached the victim slowly, so as to not startle her. He crouched down in front of her to place a comforting hand on the stranger’s shoulder. “Are you okay, Miss...?”

Recognizing the hero in front of her, understanding dawned on the brunette’s face before it was slowly covered with disappointment. “My...my name is Krysta. I was akumatized, wasn’t I?” She asked in a despondent voice.

“We’re afraid so,” spoke the black-clad hero. “Can you tell us what happened before the butterfly appeared?”

“I...I thought that everyone had forgotten about me,” Krysta explained with a shuddering breath, her composure cracking slightly to allow her tears to flow. “... ** _I mean,”_** the brunette swallowed, turning her tear streaked face towards the heroes once more, **_“no one_** **seemed** ** _to care or_** **stopped** ** _to notice that_** **I’m** ** _there, so_** **I** **got** ** _lost in the in-between.”_**

“ **_No one deserves to be forgotten_ ** ,” said a quiet female voice from behind the cat-themed hero. His eyes widened and his ears perked up, thinking that he had heard the voice of his sweet civilian friend. Chat turned around with Marinette’s name on his tongue, only to see his spotted partner instead.

**_“No one deserves to fade away,”_ ** Ladybug sang quietly as she tread softly over, her footfalls nearly as soft as her partner’s.  **_“No one should come and go, and have no one know he was ever even here.”_ **

She too, made to kneel next to the victim  **_“No one deserves to disappear,”_ ** the heroine said as she placed her hand on the shoulder that Chat’s hand wasn’t occupying.

“ **_It's true_ ** ,” Chat picked up, nodding his head in agreement. In his mind, he was reeling from the knowledge that his partner had a voice that could nearly rival Marinette’s. But only just. Marinette was still a better singer, in his opinion.  **_“Even if you've always been that barely-in-the-background kind of_ ** **gal** **_, you still matter.”_ **

**_“And even if you're somebody who can't escape the feeling that the world's passed you by,”_ ** Ladybug continued, smiling as Krysta and her partner turned their attention towards her. She gave the brunette's shoulder a gentle squeeze as she said,  **_“You still matter.”_ **

The girl finally gave them a smile, the tears no longer causing rivulets on her otherwise clear complexion. “Thank you,” she said quietly, looking each hero in the eye. “Both of you.”

The pair of costumed teenagers each gave a smile before standing up, both of them working together to help the brunette up from the ground. They then guided her to the specialized akuma victims unit to be evaluated.

“Ladybug! Chat Noir!”

The heroic pair turned toward the familiar voice of the Ladyblogger shouting at them, hoping to get an exclusive interview. 

The red spotted hero suddenly heard the beeping of her Miraculous chirping in her ears incessantly. She lifted a hand to touch her earrings, and turned to her partner to say, “I’m running out of time. Chat Noir, could you…?”

The cat-themed hero nodded, noticing the slightly uneasy look that had appeared on his partner’s face at the thought of facing Alya. He wondered about that, as his Lady had never had a problem with the blogger before “I've got it, M’Lady. I have a bit more time,” he said with a smirk, holding out his right hand to show her that he still had four pads glowing a bright green on his ring.

She gifted him a smile filled with gratitude, one which had reminded him briefly of another girl with dark hair and gemstone eyes. “Thanks, Chat! Bug out!” Ladybug called out as she used her yo-yo to zip away, making sure to take a roundabout route home. 

The black-clad hero shook his head, hoping to dispel the far-fetched thought that perhaps the two girls that he loved could possibly be one and the same out of his mind. He barely succeeded before he turned to face the junior journalist.

“Good Evening, Miss Césaire,” Chat Noir practically purred in a cheerful voice, ready to put on a good performance. “And how are you  _ feline _ on this wonder- _ fur _ night?”

“Chat Noir, you and Ladybug were on fire tonight!” She gushed.

The blond played up his part, nearly preening at the praise as he took out his staff, slinging it across his shoulders before resting his arms on either side. “Why, thank you, Miss Ladyblogger,” he said with a wink and a smirk.

The Ladyblogger rolled her eyes in good humor at the feline themed hero, before she brought her phone up to eye level to show that she was recording. “So, what were your thoughts on today's akuma? Do you think Hawk Moth's creations are getting more dangerous?" 

Chat’s smirk slowly fell as he contemplated his answer, a thoughtful expression replacing it instead. “Well...,” he began tentatively, not wanting to give out too much information just in case old Hawky was a subscriber to Alya’s blog. “As for Hawkmoth’s akumas possibly getting more dangerous, that’s always been a possibility. We want to remind the people of Paris to please stay a safe distance away from the fighting, as we wouldn’t want anyone to get hurt in the process. “

“Today’s akuma was otherwise… enlightening?” The hero said, feeling as if he were grasping at straws. “It brought up a point, really, that one shouldn’t be dismissed for no reason.”

This brought a troubled look to cross the bespectacled girl’s face, one that Chat didn’t fail to catch. She shook her head for a moment to clear it before she decided on a follow up question. “How so?” She asked inquisitively.

At his wit’s end, the blond chuffed. He knew that Alya wanted to be a good journalist one day, but did he really need to spell it out?

“Think about it,” he said, deciding that maybe what he was about to say could help mend what was going on between the blogger and his princess; if only by giving the girl before him some perspective from an outside source. “Let’s say that your friend is trying to tell you something that sounds fantastic, but another friend is telling you that your first friend is lying. The second friend happens to be one of your best friends, but she seems to be a little jealous of the first friend. Do you write your best friend off as someone who is jealous, or do you look into your first friend’s claims to see if they have any truth to them?”

_ ‘In other words: tl;dr: check your sources, Alya,’ _ Chat thought in his head as he watched the Ladyblogger’s eyes widen. He shook his head as he began to wonder why he was slowly becoming a walking meme machine.

All he really wanted to do was go back to Marinette and cuddle with her, but knowing the lateness of the hour put a damper on that. As much as he knew that she was usually one to stay up late into the night, he unfortunately had an early morning photo shoot to be presentable for.

His Miraculous beeped once more, now down to three pads. He needed to wrap this up before his friend really did have a big scoop to cover. 

“Just… something to think about,” the hero said casually as he swung his staff off of his shoulders, getting himself ready to depart. Thinking of the impromptu duet that his Lady and he had done, he decided to leave some parting words to not only Alya, but also to her audience. “Also, please remember...,” he said before clearing his throat just a little. **_“If you never get around to doing some remarkable thing...That doesn't mean that you're not worth remembering.”_ **

He stepped forward and placed a hand on the bespectacled girl's shoulder. “ **_Think of the people who need to know,”_ ** he said, looking at her intensely with the camera between them still recording. “ **_They need to know, so you need to show them.”_ **

Chat stepped back and away from her with a grin, hoping that his message was coming through based on the look of awe crossing the junior reporters face.

**_“That no one deserves to be forgotten,”_ ** he sang the melody lightly, startling the blogger as he moved away a few more steps to prepare for his departure.  **_“No one deserves to fade away. No one should flicker out or have any doubt, that it matters that they are here.”_ **

The blond turned and shot his intrepid friend one more smile, even though his eyes were narrowed. “ **_No one deserves to disappear._ ** _ Cat _ -ch you later, Miss Césaire.” He said as he pressed a button on his baton and shot up into the air, barely escaping more questions with two pads left glowing on his ring.

He raced to get home quickly before his transformation ran out.

* * *

A few arrondissements away, Ladybug landed on her balcony, her timer running out just as she fell through her skylight window, landing on her loft bed. 

“I felt really bad about tonight’s akuma,” Marinette said with a sigh to Tikki as she gently caught the little Kwami as she was released from her earrings. “No one deserves to be treated the way that she was, prior to being akumatized.”

The little red embodiment of Creation looked up at her Holder, a look of love and concern on her face. “You are a very nice person, Marinette, but things like this aren't really something that you can fix,” she said, floating up to nuzzle the dark-haired girl’s cheek.

The designer smiled softly in response to her little companion, nuzzling the ladybug-like creature in return. “I know, but I also realize that that is one of my fears as well,” she said a little sadly.

“I can understand that,” Tikki said as she moved away slightly, clearing her throat a little. “ **_When you're falling in a forest, and there's nobody around...All you want is for somebody to find you…”_ ** she trailed off with a pointed look in her Chosen’s direction.

**_“When you're falling in a forest, and when you hit the ground...All you need is for somebody to find you,”_ ** the young Guardian picked up with a small smile before giggling quietly

“Thank you, Tikki,” she said with a yawn, the exhaustion of the day beginning to catch up with her. 

“You should sleep,” the kwami suggested, floating away to retrieve a macaron for herself. “You have a big day tomorrow, especially with Adrien at school.”

Marinette smiled sleepily before her thoughts began to drift towards her silly partner and crush being the same person. 

Her eyes snapped open and she shot up to a sitting position, nearly hitting her head on her ceiling. She quickly grabbed a pillow and proceeded to shove her face into it, screaming as she did.

Tikki buzzed over rapidly as soon as she heard the commotion, taking notice of her Holder in her current freak out position.

“Marinette! What happened? What’s wrong?” She asked worriedly as she went to fret over her Chosen.

The dark-haired girl removed the pillow from her face, gasping as she did, “Tikki… Adrien… Adrien and Chat Noir are the same person!”

The mystical creature blinked in confusion before amusement took over her petite little features. “Yes,” she said teasingly. “You two have also had a kiss or two while you were up on your balcony tonight.”

This prompted another gasp from the young Guardian before she shoved the pillow back into her face to scream into it once again.

The kwami rolled her eyes and started to giggle uncontrollably, already resigned to the fact that this was going to be a long night.

* * *

Chat Noir landed in Adrien Agreste's bedroom just before his transformation ran out, leaving the blond behind to stare out his large windows into the night in the direction of a certain bakery.

“I can’t believe that Marinette loves me too,” Adrien sighed as he walked towards his bed, flopping down on it with a lovesick expression on his face. “She is just so… amazing.”

“Yeah,” Plagg drawled lazily as he flew over to nab a wheel of Camembert from his stash. “But was it your intention to confess to her as Chat Noir? Or was it just a heat of the moment kind of thing?”

“What?!” The model exclaimed as he rocketed up to a seated position. The moment the realization of what he had done dropped, he facepalmed himself. Hard.

“So it  _ was _ a ‘heat of the moment’ kind of thing,” the embodiment of Destruction cackled as he settled on his Holder’s desk, a wedge of his odious snack held firmly between his paws.

“I can’t believe that I confessed to her as Chat Noir!” He muttered rubbing at his face to try to ease the pain and to cover his mortification. “What am I going to do?” The blond whined, sinking his face further into the palms of both of his hands.

After a few moments, Adrien looked up in annoyance at his still snickering Kwami with a glare. “How about helping me out of this mess instead of reveling in my misfortune, you little cheese gremlin?” He growled, only making Plagg laugh harder.

“Ugh, you are absolutely no help at all,” the blond muttered as he got off of his bed, making his way into the bathroom to shower and prepare for bed. 

Finally controlling his laughter, the cat-like being finished his meal before stretching himself out in a slovenly manner. “Don't worry, kid. I’m sure that it will all work out in the end,” he called out lazily, knowing that his holder could probably hear him before he got in the shower. “But you realize that you might have to tell Ladybug about these latest developments.”

The loud thunk and a low groan from the direction of the bathroom was his only answer before the shower was turned on, causing Plagg to start laughing again.

  
  


* * *

  
  


The next morning saw Marinette feeling much better than she had the night before. 

She was a little nervous about seeing Adrien soon, but … knowing that he was her pun-derful partner, and that he was absolutely smitten with her on both sides of the mask just made her feel like she could take on 10 akumas with her hands tied behind her back in her civilian form.

...okay, maybe not that extreme, but the point still stood. 

She reached her locker, the feeling of euphoria still coloring her outlook of the day, until she heard an un-welcomed voice.

“Dupain-Cheng.”

The designer’s bubble popped, crashing her back down to earth as she turned to look her over her shoulder at her rival. 

“What do you want, Lila?” She asked with annoyance in her voice, noticing that the pair of them were alone in the room.

_ ‘Well, this doesn't bode well,’  _ the dark-haired girl thought, as she continued to gather her things, keeping a facade of calm about her.

“You thought that you were just so smart with that little stunt that you pulled yesterday, didn't ya?” The vixen glared at her, pretending to admire her manicure while delivering her insults. 

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Marinette said, closing her locker and turning to attempt to leave the room. She needed to get out of there, quick. There was no telling what the lying fox would do to try and break her down.

“Oh, I think that you do,” Lila sneered, venom coating her sickly sweet voice as she moved to block her from the only exit, invading the blue-eyed girl’s space as she did. “But don’t worry, I know how to break you…”

She pulled out her phone and pressed the display, showing her victim that she was activating a message on a recording app. The voice of a certain auburn-haired girl started to play, saying that Lila was so cool for having met so many interesting people and had gone to so many different places, and reassuring Lila that Marinette was only being jealous, that she really didn’t mean any harm.

It hurt the secret heroine to hear how her best friend was just… dismissing her and her feelings.

“Just you wait,” the Italian hissed as she leaned in closer, closing out of the recording program and forcing the designer to back herself into a literal corner of the room. Her olive-colored eyes glittered dangerously as she said, “I am going to make your life miserable. I have them all wrapped around my fingers, especially your best friend! All of your other friends will soon abandon you and you will be all alone and forgotten by the time I am done with you.”

She turned and flounced out, brunette head held high with a devious smirk on her face.

Marinette stood in shock for a moment before she slowly sank to the floor, not caring if she dirtied her clothes in the process. She pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them, laying her forehead against the appendages. She could feel Tikki trying to soothe her through the material of her purse, but it didn’t make much difference to the designer at the moment.

**_“No one deserves to be forgotten,”_ ** the dark-haired girl sang softly to herself, trying her best to self soothe. She swallowed down the lump in her throat, fighting with her emotions, determined not to get under Hawkmoth’s influence.  **_“No one deserves to fade away.”_ **

She could feel her walls breaking down, even as she desperately tried to shore them up. The secret heroine took a long, slow breath, and wished for someone, anyone, to find her and help pull her back from the brink before it was too late.

**_“No one should flicker out or have any doubt that it matters that they are here,”_ ** Marinette continued to sing, her voice becoming a little more broken as the tears started to spill over her lashes and onto her cheeks. **_“No one deserves to disappear. To disappear… Disappear.”_ **

* * *

Adrien’s early morning photo shoot could have definitely gone better. He had been distracted and unfocused, making the photographer groan and complain. 

He tried his best to snap himself out of it, but all he could think about was last night and the way that a certain dark-haired girl had looked in the moonlight just before he kissed her.

He desperately needed to find Marinette.

There were a few things that he needed to talk to her about.

When he was finally dropped off in front of the school, he threw open the car door to begin his race up the stone steps.

In his mad dash, he had accidentally bumped into a body just before he crossed the threshold of the school’s entrance. A hand reached out to steady him before he could stumble too badly as a familiar voice called out to him.

“Whoa, Dude. Where’s the fire?”

Glancing up, the blond took in the familiar cap and headphones “Sorry, Nino,” Adrien said as he shifted his green gaze to look at the area immediately surrounding them. “I’m trying to find Marinette. Have you seen her?”

“No, sorry, dude,” Nino said as he readjusted his cap, noticing how his friend didn't really seem like himself. “I haven't.” 

“I've gotta go find her,” the model said, his eyes still scanning over the entire courtyard area in search of a pair of familiar dark-haired pigtails. “I...I need to tell her something. Something important.”

This made the DJ feel suspicious, but he couldn’t tell why.

“Why, dude?” He asked, his coffee colored eyes narrowing behind his corrective lenses, trying to figure out a possible solution to whatever problem his friend might be having, even though he didn't know what the problem was, as of yet. “What’s up?”

Not finding the person he was looking for mulling around in the courtyard, Adrien took a deep breath, then turned to his best friend. 

"Nino, I need help,” the model said in a very serious voice as he grabbed Nino by both shoulders and looked him straight in the eye. “I think I'm in love with Marinette!"

He then let go of the DJ and took off, running as fast as he could without the use of his Miraculous to find who he thought to be at least one of the girls of his dreams

Nino stared after him for a long moment, opened his mouth, closed it. 

Opened it again.

"ALYA! COME OVER HERE! IT'S HAPPENING! HELL FROZE OVER!!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Original prompt by InkyCoffee (Lou):
> 
> "Nino, I need help. I think I'm in love with Marinette!"
> 
> Nino stared at him for a long moment, opened his mouth, closed it. 
> 
> Opened it again.
> 
> "ALYA! COME OVER HERE! IT'S HAPPENING! HELL FROZE OVER!!"
> 
> I currently have up until chapter 10 completely finished, and I’m still trying to figure in where I am ending this story. So if the postings slow down after chapter 10, I am so, so sorry.
> 
> I always told myself to not publish anything until I was completely done with a story, but I jumped the gun on this one. Originally, this fic was only supposed to be about 7 chapters long, and well, we are no where near close to finished as of yet!
> 
> I want to thank each and every one of you who have read, liked, commented, recommended, and/or left kudos on YWBF. I may not reply to every comment, but a appreciate each and every one of you far more than you could possibly imagine, and I am so, so glad that you are enjoying the story so far!
> 
> Sincerely, Me


	8. You Will Be Found

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 🎵”Even when the dark comes crashing through, when you need someone to carry you. When you’re broken on the ground, you will be found.”🎵

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Real Life kicked my butt this week, but I wanted to get this chapter out to you all.
> 
> Again, a huge “Thank You” to [ Khanofallorcs](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Khanofallorcs/pseuds/Khanofallorcs) of being an absolutely Awesome Beta!

“Nino, are you sure?” The junior reporter asked as she jogged beside him, the two of them trying to keep up with the model and failing spectacularly. 

Who knew that Sunshine was so fast! He could give Chat Noir a run for his money!

Huffing and puffing, Nino slowed to a stop, bending over and bracing himself against a wall to catch his breath. It had been some time since he and Alya had been temporary superheroes, and his body was all too happy to remind him of that fact. She stopped beside him, barely winded and making him jealous because of it. “Als, when your best friend comes up to you with the look that he gave me and uses ‘that’ tone of voice, they’re telling you the truth,” he said in between gasps. “I know my dude, and he’s not lying.”

The bespectacled girl blinked, brows furrowed as she remembered Chat Noir’s words from last night. “Then that means...oh no,” she said with dread in her voice.

The DJ glanced up at her, confusion coloring his face. “What is it, Alya?”

Face becoming a mask of determination, she began to walk. “It means that we better catch up with our friends quickly. There are a few things that I need to clarify…”

  
  
  
  


Adrien rounded the corner of the hallway at breakneck speed, only to quickly put on the brakes and hide when he had seen Lila exit the locker room, a smug, almost victorious look gracing her face. His stomach dropped and the only thing that he could think of was one word. “Marinette,” the blond whispered, as he raced through the locker room doors.

He found her in a deserted corner of the locker room, sitting with her thighs pressed up to her chest and her arms hugging her knees. Her head was resting on her knees, and she looked like she was close to crying. Keeping an eye out for corrupted butterflies, he walked over to her swiftly, knelt in front of her, and asked in a soft voice, “Marinette? Are you alright?”

She shook her head, not lifting it to see who was speaking to her and hugged her knees tighter. After a moment, she took a deep breath. " **_Have you ever felt like nobody was there_ ** ?" Marinette sang in a soft, low voice. " **_Have you ever felt forgotten in the middle of nowhere?”_ **

She lifted her face slightly, just enough for him to see the red rimming around her eyes, but she still didn't meet his.  **_“Have you ever felt like you could disappear_ ** ?” the designer whispered brokenly, her breath hitching slightly.

She swallowed and looked up, finally meeting the blond’s tsavorite gaze. “ **_Like you could fall, and no one would hear_ ** ,” the dark-haired girl breathed out. She seemed to have curled in on herself at that line, shoulders hunched and arms tight around her knees. Marinette looked away, ashamed and embarrassed, not noticing the fond look that the blond beside her was gifting her.

Adrien had moved slowly, placing a hand gently on her arms while he raised the other to brush aside the hair hanging in her face. “ **_Well, let that lonely feeling wash away,_ ** ” he sang to her softly, moving the hand from her hair to caress her cheek with the back of his knuckles, “ **_Maybe there's a reason to believe you'll be okay. 'Cause when you don't feel strong enough to stand…_ ** ” he trailed off softly, moving to stand before the girl who captured his heart. He reached out, offering his hand to help his princess rise from the floor. “ **_You can reach, reach out your hand,”_ ** the blond sang, gifting the designer with a small smile.

She gaped at him for a moment before she smiled in return, lifting her hand to fit it into his. The model’s smile morphed into a grin as he helped her to her feet, the pair not noticing that their two bespectacled friends had entered the room minutes before, nor that the latter pair had moved to conceal themselves behind the lockers located behind the blond. 

**_“Even when the dark comes crashing through, when you need a friend to carry you,”_ ** Adrien crooned at the dark-haired girl as he guided her to a nearby bench. He sat down on it and gestured for her to join him. 

Marinette sat, tucking her head and squeaking a bit in shyness when he pulled her closer to him so that he could drape his left arm around her shoulder to comfort her. “ **_And when you're broken on the ground, you will be found. So let the sun come streaming in, 'cause you'll reach up and you'll rise again,_ ** ” he sang to her, trying to convey to her that everything would be alright. Using his right hand, the model gently tilted her head up and towards him with the tips of his fingers. “ **_Lift your head and look around. You will be found._ ** ”

The designer's eyes began to water again, so she closed the distance and leaned her head into his shoulder, trying to hide her tears. “Marinette, please tell me what’s wrong,” Adrien pleaded as he tightened his hold on her, rubbing her shoulder to give her some semblance of comfort.

The dark-haired girl deflated a bit as she let out a long sigh. “Fine,” she relented, closing her eyes in defeat. “I’ll tell you. But you aren't going to like it.”

“It doesn’t matter if I like it or not,” the blond stated with a sigh. “What matters is that whatever it is… it's hurting you, Marinette.”

He lifted a hand to her face, cradling her cheek and wiping away the tears that had managed to escape from her long, inky lashes. “So, please, let me help you,” he pleaded once more, throwing in some kitten eyed looks to get her to cooperate.

Alya listened as Marinette reluctantly told Adrien about what Lila had said to her. The constant threats, the manipulations, the double-sided comments, the snide remarks. There were so many that her eyes were brimming with tears of her own as the shock and horror of Lila’s actions finally pierced through the mirage that the Italian had concocted. She turned her head to look at her boyfriend, only to notice the same look that was on her face was currently residing on his. 

“Nino,” she croaked out, catching his attention with her throat coated in repressed tears. “What the hell have I done?”

Her question cleared the ill look from his face, only for confusion to take its place. “What do you mean, Als?” he asked quietly, not wanting his bro to know that they had been eavesdropping on them.

The junior journalist took a shaky breath, letting it out slowly to calm herself down. Hawkmoth wasn’t going to turn her today if she could help it.

“Last night,” she started softly. “Marinette and I had an argument. It involved Lila, and I kinda… sorta… accused Mari of being jealous?” Her quiet voice had turned sheepish. 

The DJ stared at her in wide-eyed disbelief, his mouth agape, before he lifted a hand to his face to remove his glasses and to rub away at the stress points found there with his free hand. He pinched the bridge of his nose as he took a breath, exhaling slowly as he fought to find his calm. 

“I think…” he began, as he moved his hand from his nose to cover his mouth for just a moment before he used the opposite hand to place his glasses back on. He then took off his cap momentarily to scratch the back of his head. 

Letting out a breath, Nino placed his cap back on and tried again. ”I think that some apologies are in order, as well as clearing up some miscommunications?”

She lowered her gaze and nodded, taking another breath to steady her emotions. She lifted her head and steeled herself with determination before she went to move from their hiding spot. 

“Marinette?” Alya said with a slightly raised voice as she turned the corner from the lockers, Nino following behind her. The model glanced over at her, an angry and protective look etched in his features. This deeply disturbed the auburn-haired girl, but it was the look of defeat and utter betrayal that the dark-haired was giving her that had the blogger swallow in remorse. “Is it true?” She asked quietly. “Did Lila really threaten you?”

Marinette blinked at the questions, then turned to silently communicate with her blond protector. After a moment, he gave her an encouraging nod, seeing this as a way to mend the rift that this had caused the girls’ friendship. The designer deflated slightly with a sigh before straightening her posture and turning back to address the other pair of friends. 

“Yes,” she said quietly with her head slightly bowed, not wanting to see the looks on her friends’ faces. She swallowed down her tears once again before she closed her eyes in shame. “She did,” the dark-haired girl croaked, feeling like she was on the verge of weeping once more.

Marinette was suddenly engulfed in yet another warm embrace, surprising her. Adrien’s arm was moved from her shoulder to her waist so that the blogger could wrap her arms around the petite girl. After a moment's hesitation, she brought her own arms up to return the hug from her auburn-haired friend.

“Girl, why didn't you tell us?” Alya asked after a moment in a whisper, drawing back slightly from the embrace with her hazel eyes filling with saline liquid behind her thick lenses. 

A throat cleared, the sound drawing all eyes to a certain blond.

“That...might have been my fault,” Adrien said as he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. “I told her in the beginning that it would probably be best if we took the high road and let Lila lie herself into a corner. But in my defense, I had no idea about the threats,” he said with a pointed look at the dark-haired girl beside him. 

Marinette flinched and ducked her head low at the accusation. “To be honest, I wasn’t sure if anyone would believe me if I said anything, or if Lila would’ve spun it so that I was the one who had threatened her.”

Her fists were clenched in her lap, so she slowly started to loosen them, fidgeting with her fingers as she did. “She had done something similar to that before,” she said in a soft voice.

Alya felt the blood drain from her face as she came to the realization. “Your expulsion…,” she said quietly.

The designer swallowed before she gave a small nod in confirmation.

“That bitch…,” Adrien growled, his face morphing in anger. “And she's still hurting you even after I made that deal with her.”

Marinette blinked up at him, brows furrowed in confusion as she searched his face. “What deal?” She asked, a feeling of dread pooling in her stomach.

“I…,” the blond said hesitantly, the words in his mouth tasting vile. He glanced at each of his friends before he closed his eyes and sighed in defeat.

Marinette, Alya, Nino saw this and figured that this was something that the model needed to work through, but also needed to confide in them. Marinette wrapped her arm around the blond’s waist and gave him a small side hug. “We’re here for you too, Adrien,” she said softly. “You are not alone in this any more than I am”

**_“There's a place where we don't have to feel unknown,”_ ** the junior reporter said in a sing-songy way, placing a hand on his shoulder.  **_“And every time that you call out, you're a little less alone”_ **

**_“If you only say the word,”_ ** sang the DJ in a voice that was a little off-key, clapping a hand on his best friend’s other shoulder and squeezing it.

“ **_From across the silence, your voice is heard,_ ** ” they sang together in perfectly imperfect harmony.

Marinette blinked at the two of them, wondering when her friends had learned so much of some of her favorite songs.

Meanwhile, hearing this bit of encouragement from his friends, Adrien got up the courage to tell them the truth.

“I made a deal with her to get Marinette un-expelled,” he began with a low voice, wincing when he heard the dark-haired girl gasp. He turned to her, laying a hand on top of hers. He opened his eyes but did not dare to look any higher than at the hand he held within his grasp. “I had a feeling that she was the one behind your expulsion, so I told her that I would be her friend, but only if she would lie once again to get you reinstated, and for her to not hurt you anymore.”

Three sets of jaws dropped in astonishment.

“What?!” 

“Dude! Seriously?!”

“...Adrien?” 

Her quiet voice and the touch of her hand on his face were what pulled the model from his self-loathing. He finally lifted his face towards hers, worried at what he might find. 

What Adrien saw startled him, as all that he found was love and concern filling the blue topaz depths of Marinette’s eyes. Her mouth was turned down in a frown, but not of anger or disapproval. More like a frown of worry.

“Yes…?” He wanted to say, M’Lady, was practically dying to say it. But that wasn’t fair. Marinette wasn’t Ladybug.

Wasn’t she?

He blinked at that thought, then mentally shook himself, wanting to focus on the girl before him instead of the possibility that she was also his spotted partner. 

“Why did you...why would you put yourself through that kind of torture?” Marinette asked of him, brows furrowed and tears gathering in her eyes once more, but this time they were for him. 

She was crying for him.

He reeled with that information flowing into him. Nobody in his recent memory had ever cried for him before.

But Marinette was.

“I…,” the blond trailed off, not sure what to say or even how to say it. How could Adrien tell her that he did it because he loves her before he even knew that he loved her? 

He could feel Plagg purr softly in his shirt pocket, quiet enough that his friends wouldn’t hear him, but the vibrations were a soothing balm. It felt like encouragement being given wordlessly.

Taking a deep breath, the model lowered his face once again to gather his thoughts before he spoke. “You didn't deserve what she had done to you, Marinette,” he spoke quietly, taking her hand in his, tracing the lines and scars that littered across the otherwise soft surface with his thumb. “Lila was already on thin ice with me after she lied to get into my house, then lied to Father, getting both Nathalie and Gorilla into trouble,” he paused, taking a calming breath trying to quell the oncoming anger that he could feel rising. “Then I saw her at a photoshoot shortly after your expulsion, and all I saw was red, but I couldn't act on it. However, I knew that I had a bargaining chip in my pocket,” Adrien closed his eyes for a moment before raising his lashes to look up into her ocean colored gaze. He swallowed and said softly, “Me.”

There was a noise of protest coming from his other friends, but it fell on deaf ears. All of his attention was laser-focused on her.

A look of astonishment crossed her delicate features before they settled into a familiar look of determination, slightly startling the poor boy beside her. “No,” the designer said, a ring of steel echoing through her voice. Eyes filled with blue fire similar to that of a certain female hero he was well acquainted with blazed as she declared quietly, “This ends now.” 

“...Marinette…,” the blond whispered in awe, shock ricocheting throughout his neural synapses. The look in her eyes was way too familiar, as was the tone of her voice. All of that and paired with her hair done up in her customary pigtails...

_ ‘Could...could it be possible?’  _ He thought with his eyes widening in astonishment, the feeling of dots about to connect stealing his breath.

Was Marinette really - 

“She’s right,” Alya spoke up with vindication coating her voice, knocking Adrien off of his current train of thought. “Lila made that deal with you, agreeing to also not harm Marinette. She didn't take into account that psychological harm would be included as actual harm on her end. Therefore, she invalidated your agreement, Sunshine.”

He blinked hard, a feeling of disorientation by his almost revelation nearly overwhelming him. He tried to focus on the words that she said but was he still not quite comprehending them. “So that means…?” He trailed off in confusion.

“It means you’re off the hook, Dude,” Nino said, his usually chill voice now having a slight edge to it. “You no longer have to play her sick games anymore.”

It took a moment for the realization to sink in, but once it did, the relief he felt was so palpable, he had to lean in a nearly boneless fashion against his dark-haired love, making her squawk in response. 

“Oh, thank God,” he exclaimed dramatically, acting every bit the Chat Noir that he was, causing his seatmate to giggle. He smiled up at her, wiggling his eyebrows a little in hopes of getting her to continue to do so.

Marinette’s laughter was his new favorite sound in the world, and he wanted to hear more of it.

“So...What’s the plan now?” Asked the blogger as she rolled her eyes at the display, bringing her attention to her best friend. This caused the other two to turn their focus on her as well, silently nominating the blue-eyed girl as the group’s leader.

The secret heroine rolled her eyes to herself as she saw the position that they had put her in. ‘If only they knew…,’ she paused when she had a sudden thought. ‘Huh, I was their leader all along.’

She bit her lip and chewed on it thoughtfully for a moment, ignoring the look that the blond was giving her for a moment before she turned to him. He was her partner, in and out of the mask, and Marinette knew that she couldn’t do this without him. 

She waited for him to bring his gaze back to hers silently, blushing a little once she realized exactly what he had been staring at. His cheeks had also flushed a bit once he realized that he’d been caught, but the model kept his eyes on hers. 

“Together?” She asked quietly, an unspoken question in her eyes:

_ ‘You and me against the world, Chaton?’ _

Adrien gave her a lopsided grin, determination coloring his features and shining out of his tsavorite green eyes. “Together,” he confirmed, answering in kind.

_ ‘Always... M’Lady.’  _

The thought that she might be Ladybug never rang more true to him than at that moment, and it sent a little thrill up his spine. 

With a nod, the dark-haired girl turned back to their friends. 

“It's time to take down Lila Rossi,” Marinette said with conviction in her tone. “But we’re gonna have to be smart about it. She’s good at manipulating the situation to her advantage and  _ very _ good at twisting her words to make it seem like her lies are truths.”

She stood to pace, already missing the warmth of her Chaton’s arm around her, but she needed the movement. She had always found the solution to her Lucky Charms while she was either under pressure or mobile and had found that it sometimes helped to pace when puzzling out a problem that didn't have a tactile solution.

She brought a fist to her temple, tapping it lightly in frustration. “Why can't I  _ think _ of anything?” She growled at herself with her eyes closed. 

A large hand suddenly covered the wrist of the hand she had been tapping herself with, stilling it in the process. “No need to beat yourself up over it,” its owner's familiar voice said softly.

The designer looked up and met the tsavorite color of Adrien’s gaze. “You don't have to come up with the entire plan all by yourself, Marinette,” he told her, a small smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

“Sunshine’s right, Girl,” Alya stated as she placed a supportive hand on the dark-haired girl’s shoulder. 

“Yeah, dudes,” Nino chimed in. “You have a whole team with you now.”

Marinette couldn't help but smile at the irony of it all, “Thank you, everyone.”

A caress to her thumb joint brought her focus back to the fact that Adrien was essentially holding her hand. She looked down to where her wrist was still held by those long piano fingers, feeling as if another turning point was about to happen. 

**_“Out of the shadows, the morning is breaking, and all is new,”_ ** Adrien said as he turned to look at his dark-haired friend. He swallowed a little at the realization that his world might have just been turned on its axis. “ **_All is new.”_ **

Ah, there it was.

The dark-haired girl gazed up at him, favoring him with a smile full of some much-needed love and affection like she knew that he just…  _ craved _ . “ **_It‘s feeling awfully empty, and suddenly I see that all is new. All is new,”_ ** she sang as she grabbed his other hand, an earnest look on her face. **_“You are not alone.”_ **

**_“You are not alone,”_ ** Alya responded.

**_“You are not, you are not alone,”_ ** the two sang together

**_“You are not alone,”_ ** echoed Nino.

**_“Even when the dark comes crashing through when you need someone to carry you,”_ ** the designer sang to the model with a smile on her face, her gemstone eyes shining up into his.  **_“When you're broken on the ground…”_ **

**_You will be found_ **

**_“So let the sun come streaming in, 'cause you'll reach up and you'll rise again,”_ ** Adrien sang back to her. He stroked her knuckles with his thumbs, silently trying to convey how much this beautiful girl holding his hands meant to him. **_“If you only look around…”_ **

**_You will be found_ **

**_“Even when the dark comes crashing through,”_ ** Alya sang softly as she pulled her best friend away from the blond to embrace her into a hug, finally feeling at peace that the two of them were on good terms again.

**_You will be found_ **

**_“When you need someone to carry you,”_ ** Nino echoed as he threw his arm around Adrien’s shoulder, bringing his other hand up for a fist bump, with which the model complied with a grin. The DJ bobbed his head at him, then nodded towards Marinette, giving his best friend a shoulder squeeze before nudging him towards the designer. The blond shot his friend a grin before he walked closer towards the love of his life.

**_You will be found_ **

The blogger noticed the movement and began to move away from the dark-haired girl. She took Marinette by both shoulders and turned her around, nudging her to get closer to Adrien, who had caught her by both of her arms as she stumbled. 

**_You will be found_ **

**_“You will be found,”_ ** the blond sang to her softly as he helped her up to her feet, then lifted his hand to cup her face, his thumb gently caressing her cheekbone.

Marinette gazed up at him with love shining from her blue topaz colored eyes, dazzling him even further.  **_“You will be found,”_ ** she echoed as she lifted her hand to cover the one he had placed on her cheek, nuzzling into his large palm

Adrien pulled his dark-haired friend closer and rested his forehead against hers.

“Thank you, Adrien,” she whispered, smiling up into his half-lidded, glittering green gaze. 

The blond’s face softened as he smiled fondly at her. “You’re welcome, Marinette,” he said in an equally soft whisper.

The bell rang, ending the moment, but the two parted with a warm feeling shared amongst them. 

  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Before I started writing this story, I always wanted these two dorks to sing this song together! Then the Spin the Record challenge was issued, and I decided to expand on my little idea a little further. I had originally intended for approx. 7 chapters, and I just couldn’t seem to stop adding onto it! The final number of chapters still isn’t finalized on my end yet!
> 
> Thank you all so much for reading! Work is probably going to continue kicking my butt for the next 2 weeks, so if I don’t get to answer your comments, please know that they are all appreciated, and that I’m so glad that you are enjoying my story!
> 
> Sincerely, Me


	9. To Break In A Glove

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 🎵“You might not think it's worth it, you might begin to doubt, but you can't take any shortcuts...You gotta stick it out...”🎵

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, a huge “Thank You” to [ Khanofallorcs](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Khanofallorcs/pseuds/Khanofallorcs) of being an absolutely Awesome Beta!

The bell rang over the door frame of the bakery as Adrien walked through it later that day. The glorious smell of fresh bread and sweet pastries once again assailed his heightened olfactory system, making him close his eyes once he took a deep breath of it in.

Opening them once more, he noticed that, for once, that there wasn’t someone waiting at the counter.

That got him worried a bit.

“Hello?” He called out as he glanced around, wanting to make his presence known “is anyone here?”

A rather large, mustachioed head poked out from behind the kitchen door. Green eyes blinked back at the blond from under dark, bushy eyebrows while the full mustache twitched in a smile. “Well, hello there, Adrien,” Tom Dupain said in a jolly sort of voice. “Marinette and Sabine just ran upstairs for a moment. Is there anything that I can do for you?”

The model sent the man a smile and shook his head slightly. “Not really, Sir. I’m here to walk Marinette over to my place. We’re still working on that big art project.”

“The… music video, right?”

“Yes, Sir. We… still haven’t decided on the song that we’re thinking of doing yet, but we’re getting plenty of practice working together in the meantime,” said the blond, twisting the strap of his school bag.

The larger man nodded in understanding. “I see,” he said. “Well, why don't you come on back? I’m just kneading some dough and could use the company.”

Adrien’s eyes widened as he took a tentative step towards the doors. “Are you sure it's alright?” He asked, feeling a little nervous.

The baker chuckled as he started for the kitchen. “Wouldn’t have asked you if I wasn’t sure,” he said with a smile as he pushed the door open. “Come on in, Son.”

The term of endearment didn't go unnoticed by the blond, freezing him to the spot for a moment in a daze. With his face dusted in a slightly rosy hue, he followed Marinette’s father into the working area of the bakery. 

There was a large blob of dough sitting in what had to be the largest mixing bowl Adrien had ever seen. It sat on the large work table, a large digital scale with plastic wrap adorning it was next to it, and a smaller bowl full of what looked like rice flour also sat nearby. The ovens were on, making the room feel nice and toasty warm. 

The model gaped at the room, feeling a little out of his depth with the kitchen set up. Tom looked over and couldn't help but laugh a little at the look on the younger man’s face.

“It is a bit daunting, isn’t it?” The larger man said, moving to rip a piece of the dough off of the main blob to place it on the scale. Checking to see if he had the right amount, he dusted the table with the flour before setting to work on kneading and shaping the dough into the correct shape needed to make Pain de Campagne. “I felt the same way when I started working in my father’s kitchen.”

This caused Adrien to blink. “I didn’t know that your father was a baker too, Mr. Dupain,” he commented. He knew the answer to this, but seeing as  _ Chat Noir _ was involved in the Bakerix fight, and  _ Adrien  _ wasn’t, he thought that it was an appropriate question to ask.

The elder of the two just chuckled all the same. “I thought that I had told you to please call me Tom, young man,” he mock-scolded, failing to hide the smile that was peeking out from behind his mustache. “But yes, he is a baker as well. A very stubborn and stuck in his ways one, but a baker nonetheless.”

The model watched, fascinated by the process and speed at which his friend's dad worked.

Seeing his enthusiasm and attentiveness, the baker made a decision. “Want to give it a try?” He asked as he placed another lump of dough on the scale, the action seeming to be more of muscle memory than anything.

The blond looked up at him with wide eyes once more, this time in excitement. “Really?” He asked, trying to tamper down his eagerness. 

“Go put on an apron and wash up,” Tom said with a smile, nodding in the direction of the sinks, the aprons hanging neatly beside them. He chuckled after seeing how quickly the teen tore off to do his bidding.

Adrien returned wearing the proffered apron, wiping his hands dry with a paper towel. “So… I’ve never done something like this,” he said with hesitance. “How do I get started?”

**_“Well, it's all a process that is really quite precise...A sort of secret method known to very few.”_ ** The larger man sang with a chuckle in a soft baritone as he weighed more dough, startling the blond next to him. **_“So, if you're in the market for professional advice...Well today could be a lucky day for you”_ **

Adrien gaped at the man in disbelief. “I...I didn’t know that you sang too,” he stammered slightly.

Tom just chuckled at the blond once more. “Where do you think Marinette gets it from,” he asked playfully. He leaned in closer, ready to divulge another secret. “Just between you and me, I love Sabine with all of my heart, and she has an excellent ear, but she can’t carry a tune for anything.” 

The model couldn't help but laugh as he nodded, delighted to be let in on such a secret.

“I like musicals, always have,” the baker continued as he started to shape more of the portions of dough, dusting them with the rice flour as he kneaded them, working it through. “My daughter picked up on that, and it's something that we have both shared since she first saw ‘The Sound of Music’.”

He finished shaping the dough before him, then weighed out two more portions. He turned to the blond and instructed, “Take a little of that flour there, and dust the table in front of you.”

Adrien did as he was told, practically vibrating with anticipation while waiting for the next step. 

Tom placed a mound of dough before him, stifling another chuckle at the model’s antics. “Now, take a little more flour, and dust the dough as well as your hands with it. It will help prevent it from sticking to your hands,” he explained carefully, demonstrating with his mound. “Then fold it in half in a rhythmic pattern, pressing it flat, and snapping it slightly. This gives it elasticity and develops the gluten in the dough so that it holds together well after it has been baked,” he continued with slow hands so that the teen wouldn’t get lost. 

“ **_And though this method isn't easy, every second that you spend is gonna pay off...It'll pay off in the end,”_ ** the large man sang joyfully with a smile as he noticed the blond had picked up his teachings rather quickly. “ **_It just takes a little patience._ ** **_It takes a little time. A little perseverance, and a little uphill climb. You might not think it's worth it, you might begin to doubt, but you can't take any shortcuts...You gotta stick it out, and it's the hard way… But it's the right way..._ ** **_The right way…_ ** to shape up some bread **_,”_ ** He sang, changing up the lyrics to make it more relevant to what the two of them were doing. 

Adrien snorted, cracking up for a moment before exclaiming, “What?!”

“What?” The baker answered with a shrug while still kneading, something that would look awkward on anyone else who couldn't do it with the practiced ease that Tom Dupain had. “The original lyrics are about breaking in a baseball glove. We’re shaping up bread dough. It works.”

“I didn't know that you were a fan of ‘ _ Dear Evan Hansen _ ’,” the model said, laughter still ringing in his voice.

Tom shrugged again. “My daughter and I make a point to watch those American Tony awards every year. ‘ _ Dear Evan Hansen _ ’ had won 6 of them in 2017. Once Marinette saw Ben Platt perform ‘ _ Waving Through A Window _ ’ onstage, she was hooked by the music.” 

He shot the teen a conspiring look. “She usually only gets hooked by the costumes, just so you know,” he said, rolling his eyes slightly. “Before I knew it, the soundtrack was blaring through the house every day for almost a month before she got her first commission from Jagged Stone.”

He frowned slightly as he looked over Adrien’s handiwork. “You’re gonna want to add a little more flour to that, see how it's sticking?” He pointed out, nodding at the dough in the blond’s hands.

The teen flinched, causing the larger man to look at him curiously. “I’m sorry,” Adrien said in a disappointed voice.

“What’s there to be sorry about?” The father asked, confusion coloring his voice. “It's your first time working bread dough, I wasn’t expecting perfection right away.”

Adrien blinked at that. “Really?” He asked, hope lacing through his voice.

“Really,” the baker confirmed. “You’re still learning how to do this the right way.  **_'Cause, there's a right way in everything you do. Keep that grit, follow through,”_ ** he sang, his baritone still a soft, but rich, sound.

**_“Even when everyone around you thinks you're crazy. Even when everyone around you lets things go,”_ ** he chuckled at that, remembering how he hadn’t spoken to his father for 20 years because of changing the way he baked his bread.

**_“And whether you're prepping for some test, or you're miles from some goal,”_ ** Tom advised, seeing this as a teaching moment for the sheltered teen. 

**_‘Or you're just trying to do what's best for a kid who's lost control,’_ ** the lyrics crossed Tom’s mind as he briefly thought of his daughter’s anxiety, hoping that the blond wouldn't pick up on a few missing words. 

**_“You do the hard thing, 'cause that's the right thing...Yeah, that's the right thing…,”_ ** he trailed off momentarily as he noticed a wet sheen in the model’s eyes.

“Marinette is really lucky that she has a dad that… that takes the time to be with her, and who has the patience to actually teach her how to do something,” said Adrien wistfully.

The tone of the teen’s voice nearly broke the baker’s heart in two, and he silently cursed Gabriel Agreste for being such a neglectful father. He didn't deserve to have a great kid like Adrien.

And that was the moment that two women with Asian features entered the kitchen, laughing as they exited from the stairway that led from the family quarters.

“A-Adrien! Hi!” Marinette stammered out, turning a light pink when she noticed the blond’s presence. 

Tom noticed that the blond perked up once his daughter entered the room. It gave the man some hope that the boy wouldn’t lose his sunny disposition, despite being from a rather cold family. 

If becoming the boy’s father-in-law was the best thing he could do for him in the future, well, who was he to say no?

He wiped his hands on the towel hanging from the apron at his waist, then clapped one of them on the boy’s shoulder. “Thanks for giving me a hand there, Son,” he said, keeping his voice in a kind, but jovial, tone. “ **_You're good to go.”_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Are you interested in reading and writing fanfiction, making fanart or cosplaying/roleplaying for Miraculous? Then [ the Miraculous Fanworks Discord Server ](https://discord.gg/mlfanworks) is the place for you! Come and join over 1000 other fans as we share, discuss, and have a general good time bonding over the Fandom we all love!


	10. Only Us

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 🎵“What if it's you? And what if it's me? And what if that's all that we need it to be? And the rest of the world falls away?” 🎵

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, a huge “Thank You” to [ Khanofallorcs](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Khanofallorcs/pseuds/Khanofallorcs) of being an absolutely Awesome Beta!

Ladybug sat quietly in the recesses of the Notre Dame Cathedral, quietly wringing her hands as she stared out into the Parisian night. This was the first patrol since she had figured out Chat’s identity, and she worried about the possible ramifications. Would they still work well together? Would their dynamic change so much that it would be impossible? 

...Was she going to have to find a new Black Cat? 

So consumed was she in her internal musings that she didn't hear the soft footfalls of her partner land on the wooden roof.

“Ladybug?” The black-clad hero called out to her quietly, not wanting to startle his spotted partner so badly as to make her tumble. “Are you alright?”

She was startled anyway.

“Gah!” She yelped, nearly toppling off of the roof. She windmilled her arms for only a moment before two strong, claw-tipped arms wound around her, holding her steady.

“C-Chat! You s-startled me!” She gasped out in a way that sounded incredibly familiar to the black-clad hero.

“I’m sorry, Bugaboo,” he said with the same low sounding chuckled response that he gave his Very Good Friend™ without thinking. “You were so lost in thought, I was about to send out a search party.”

“Oh, hardy-har-har,” the dark-haired girl groused, crossing her arms in indignation.

“So… what is bothering M’Lady on such a purr-fect night?” The cat-themed hero inquired of his spotted partner.

Nerves and trepidation overtook the heroine as she hunched into herself, making her partner worry. 

“Chat… I… I don't know how to tell you this…,” Ladybug swallowed as she looked up at him from under her lashes. “I...I know your identity.”

Feline eyes widened in shock, her words making Chat Noir’s heart race. He was speechless, which on any other day would’ve made the spotted hero laugh until her sides hurt, seeing as her chat-ty partner was hardly ever the quiet type.

But not tonight

A million and one thoughts might be racing through his head, but his silence was unnerving her.

“...please say something…,” she said quietly, breaking the silence and bringing her partner back to the present. He shook his head to clear it, then sat down on the edge of the roof, beckoning her to follow suit. He then took his tail into his hands to fidget with its metal end as he tried to find the right words to say.

“... what would you want me to say?” He asked quietly.

She looked up at him with wide gemstone eyes. “Anything,” she breathed out.

“M’Lady, I've had my suspicions about your identity for a while now… and if I'm correct in my assumptions…,” the black-clad hero finally managed to whisper. He swallowed nervously and closed his eyes as he silently prayed to every deity he could think of. “I only hope that you would allow me to take care of your heart, as mine fully belongs to you.”

Ladybug gasped at his confession, alarming the cat-themed hero. He opened his eyes only to find that his partner’s eyes were wet with tears.

“Please don't cry, Bugaboo,” he nearly pleaded, ready to break out the kitten eyes at any moment.

The spotted hero just laughed a little brokenly. “They’re happy tears, Chat,” she assured him.

“...are you really happy that it's me under this mask?”

“Oh, Adrien,” she breathed out so silently that he barely heard it with his enhanced hearing. The sound of his name spoken in her voice sent a thrill through him. “Of course I'm happy that it's you. I wouldn't want anyone else to be my Black Cat.”

He smiled in visible relief, “And I wouldn't want anyone else to be my Ladybug… Marinette.”

Her eyes went wide at the sound of her name flowing from his lips. “Well,” she said with a slightly strained giggle. “You guessed correctly. How did you figure me out?”

“I could ask you the same,” the blond said with a chuckle and a wink. “I guess that it was a lot of little things that just… added up?”

He took her gloved hand in his, careful of his claws. “It really did add up this morning in the locker room. I was planning on telling you as myself what I had accidentally confessed to you last night as Chat, but then the whole Lila debacle happened...”

Ladybug scowled at the mention of her adversary, but she shook it off quickly, not wanting to have the rest of her evening spoilt.

“So…,” Chat continued hesitantly. “How did you figure me out?”

“Well… it actually happened the other night during your rendition of ‘If I Could Tell Her’,” the spotted hero told him with a small giggle.

“Wait, really?!”

She rolled her eyes at him. “Yes really, you dork,” she said to him teasingly.

“Wow, I was outed by a song,” Chat muttered to himself non too quietly. Ladybug heard him and giggled quietly. His faux ears perked up at the sound of it and a lovesick grin spread out across his face. “So… what now?” he asked once her giggles quieted down.

She blinked up at him, searching his feline eyes and seeing love as the most prominent emotion shining through them. She couldn't help but smile at the sight of it.

“As the Guardian of the Miraculous, I really should've known your identity as soon as the Guardianship was transferred to me,” she said. “But I was worried about Hawkmoth finding out our identities, as we had just lost Master Fu.” Ladybug swallowed as another memory, one that she wished fervently to forget, resurfaced. “There was also another incident that had happened… that involved an alternate timeline… that you were akumatized in,” she whispered. 

“M’Lady?”

She took a deep breath and looked up at him. “It's probably fine now, we can talk about it later. And don't worry, I'm not planning on taking your Miraculous away anytime soon.”

He let out a sigh of relief that he didn't know he was holding in, making her laugh just a little.

“Just...please don't get akumatized,” she pleaded once her laughter died down. “I don't think my heart can handle going through that again, knowing now that it's you under this mask.”

“I'll try my best, Bugaboo.”

She searched his eyes and saw nothing but sincerity there. “I believe you,” she said quietly, leaning into him for comfort. “I love you,” she whispered.

Chat's eyes went wide as he snapped his head to look at her, disbelief evident on his face. “What?!” he exclaimed, nearly choking on a gasp.

“I've always loved you, civilian you, practically right from the start,” she admitted quietly, fidgeting with her gloved fingers. “Then Chat Noir slowly started to steal bits and pieces of my heart, until, before I knew it, he owned half of it as well.”

She took a deep breath, releasing it slowly as she reluctantly withdrew from him. “Finding out that both boys are the same… my heart has never felt so full.”

Chat let out a low whistle as the weight of everything she had just said settled around him. “So… I was the other boy all along, huh?”

“Yes, you silly cat!” she laughed at him.

“But… what about Luka?” he asked, a troubled look blooming on his face. “Aren't you two dating?”

Ladybug paused for a moment in confusion before clarity struck. “No, we aren't,” she said with a sigh. “While he did confess to me… I was flattered… and I did love him, but I was never ‘in love’ with him.”

She then turned the tides on him. “What about Kagami?”

“Same,” he responded with a shrug. “We tried a few dates, but they always seemed forced. Besides, she really wasn't in love with me, but the ‘idea’ of me…”

“...I am so sorry, Chaton,” Ladybug said consolingly, placing a hand on his arm.

He looked up at her, a question burning on his tongue. “What ...what made you fall in love with Adrien?” he asked with hesitance.

She blinked at him before answering, wanting to be as truthful as she could.“It was his kindness and selflessness,” she said with a small smile, losing herself to a memory. “He gave me an umbrella when it was raining out, even though I had thought the absolute worst of him at first.”

Silence descended between them as he took in her words, turning them over in his head. 

Chat never realized that what she saw was the real him behind the carefully constructed mask that his father insisted that he adorn himself with to the public, nor the literal mask that he wore when he was suited up. 

“What made you fall in love with Ladybug?”

Her quiet voice broke through his inner musings, making him blink as well. 

“It was her bravery that did me in,” he said without hesitation. “How, despite feeling insecure about her abilities, she still had the guts to stand up to Hawkmoth on that very first day,” he added wistfully.

“...oh…,” the girl behind the mask said in a quiet, defeated sounding voice, turning away from him slightly.

Her tone drew the cat-themed hero’s attention, confusion and curiosity settling on his masked face. “Is...is something wrong?” he asked hesitantly.

“I… I’m not all that brave… not without the spots that is,” she said, rubbing at her arms in an attempt to self soothe.

He furrowed his brows at that. “What are you talking about?” he questioned, taking her face in his hand and gently turning it towards him, ever mindful of his claws. “M’Lady… Marinette, you are the bravest person that I know, in or out of your mask.”

Ladybug laughed humorlessly at that. “Not when it came to telling you I liked you, you know,” she said rhetorically, keeping her eyes averted from his.

The blond blinked at her thoughtfully. “Okay,” he acquiesced. “So, maybe that was a bad example. But,” he paused, waiting for her to look up at him. “You are brave when it counts the most,” he said with a smile at her when she finally did.

She furrowed her brows at him. “But -“

_**“I don't need you to sell me on reasons to want you,”**_ Chat sang softly, cutting her off. She huffed at him, her cheeks puffing out as she did. _**“I don't need you to search for the proof that I should,”**_ he laughed at her lightly, taking her gloved hand in his carefully.

_**“You don't have to convince me...You don't have to be scared you're not enough,”**_ the hero sang with an encouraging smile in her direction, leaving Ladybug to gape up at him. _**“'Cause what we've got going is good,”**_ he continued sotto voce, rubbing small circles on the back of her thumb. 

_**“I don't need more reminders of all that's been broken,”**_ the blond returned to using his normal voice, a scowl beginning to form on his face at an unpleasant thought. He shook his head to clear it, wanting to focus more on the girl beside him. _**“I don't need you to fix what I'd rather forget.”**_

But the dark-haired girl had noticed his scowl and began to mentally curse at Gabriel Agreste once more.

_**“Clear the slate and start over, try to quiet the noises in your head,”**_ the cat-themed hero playfully, but carefully, poked her on the spot on her mask that laid right between her eyes with the tip of a claw, knocking Ladybug out of her thoughts. _ **“We can't compete with all that,”**_ he laughed at her startled look.

Chat pulled her up by the hand he still held, bringing her close to waltz with her amongst the statuary. _**“So what if it's us? What if it's us, and only us? And what came before won't count anymore or matter? Can we try that?”**_ The hero gave her a grin before he spun her out, making the spotted hero gasp in delight. _**“What if it's you? And what if it's me? And what if that's all that we need it to be? And the rest of the world falls away?”**_ He spun her back into his embrace, leaning his forehead against hers, their noses barely brushing. _**“What do you say?”**_ He asked her quietly, his feline eyes glittering with mischief and fun.

“I want to know how on earth you memorized all of these lyrics,” Ladybug giggled up at him, pushing his face away from hers slightly with a gloved fingertip to his nose. “You must’ve spent forever listening to that soundtrack.”

The cat-themed hero rolled his slitted eyes before giving her an adoring look. “Please play along, Bugaboo,” he pleaded, grabbing both of her hands and holding him to his chest.

It was Ladybug’s turn to roll her eyes at her partner. “Fine,” she said in mock defeat. _ **“I never thought there'd be someone like you who would want me,”**_ she began to sing, leaning in close, nearly touching her nose to his once more.

_**“Well…,”** _Chat trailed off, a blush peeking out from underneath his mask. He let go of her hands to rub at the back of his neck out of a nervous habit.

_**“So I give you ten thousand reasons to not let me go,”**_ the spotted hero continued cheekily, swatting at his bell for good measure. She leaned back and cleared her throat just a little, before taking his hands once again. _ **“But if you really see me… If you like me for me and nothing else,”**_ Ladybug swallowed, averting her gemstone eyes from his to look at their clasped hands. _**“Well, that's all that I've wanted for longer than you could possibly know,”**_ she sang softly, letting the lyrics speak the words of her heart.

She took a deep breath, finally glancing up to meet her beloved partner’s tsavorite stare. _**“So it can be us, it can be us, and only us. And what came before won't count anymore or matter,”**_ she smiled up at his gobsmacked expression. _**“We can try that…”**_

The cat-themed hero shook off his stupor to return her smile, falling even more in love with the girl behind the mask. 

He pulled her back into his embrace and silently whispered in her ear, “Claws in.”

Bright green light obscured her vision for a moment, making her close her eyes in reflex. 

The nasally sound of his kwami demanding him of cheese reached her ears, causing the still disguised heroine to stifle a laugh. 

His answering familiar chuckle was like music sounding so close to her ears. “Open your eyes, M’Lady,” he whispered.

Her eyes fluttered open slowly, as she blinked out the bright spots in her vision caused by his transformation. And standing before her was none other than Adrien Agreste.

The blond smiled at her lovingly as he ran his hands down her arms to entwine his long fingers with her much smaller ones. _**“It's not so impossible,”**_ he sang to her sotto voce, lifting one of her gloved hands to kiss her at her knuckles. _ **“Nobody else but the two of us here.”**_

The spotted hero couldn’t help but smile back at him, and quietly said, “Spots off.”

It was Adrien’s turn to close his eyes as the bright pink light of her transformation enveloped her, but he was quick to re-open them once it had faded without any prompting.

Knowing that it was Marinette behind the mask was one thing, but actually witnessing it just made the dream a reality.

A little red and black spotted Kwami flew past the blond as she grabbed Plagg. “Come on, Plagg,” Tikki said in a teasing tone, a small smirk on her petite face. “Let’s let these two figure things out.”

“But my cheese…,” the cat-like being complained as he was hauled off by his magical counterpart.

“Later, you glutton,” Adrien called out to him, only just briefly taking his eyes off of the girl of his dreams.

Her giggle called his attention back onto her, the musical sound giving him an almost Pavlovian response with a small burst of serotonin.

_**“'Cause you're saying it's possible,”**_ Marinette sang with laughter still ringing through her voice. _**“We can just watch the whole world disappear…”**_

The model couldn’t help the wide smile that stretched across his face, happiness and love burning brightly in his gemstone eyes as he lost himself in hers. He touched his forehead to hers once more and murmured, _**“It's just you and me.”**_

_**“That's all that we need it to be,”** _the dark-haired girl replied just softly as she brushed her nose against his, letting her eyes flutter to half-mast. 

_**“And it's only us,”**_ they both sang sotto voce together, their breaths intermingling as Adrien’s eyes drifted to her mouth, then back up to meet hers, silently asking for permission.

Marinette smiled lovingly and silently permitted him, moving in sync with him as he leaned closer and pressed his lips to hers.

If their first kiss was perfect before, it was nothing compared to this one. Both identities were known, the walls were taken down. This wasn’t just Ladybug and Chat Noir, nor just Marinette and Adrien. It was just… them, and the love that they had for each other in all of their forms.

Before they could deepen their kiss further, both of their phones let out a notification. They groaned as they reluctantly pulled away from each other, their foreheads still touching as they smiled at each other. 

“I hope that wasn’t an Akuma alert,” Adrien murmured, as he lifted a hand to brush at her bangs. He was very tempted to lean in for another kiss. 

“That was Alya’s text alert,” Marinette replied, nuzzling into his touch. “Akuma alerts are a different ringtone.”

Their phones went off once again, and Marinette groaned as she reached for hers first. 

She frowned at the notification that she saw on her lock screen. “Apparently, we’ve been added to a new group chat,” she said, unlocking her phone and showing it to her partner.

The blond lifted a brow as he looked over the screen. “The Marinette and Adrien Protection Squad?” He questioned, looking over to his dark-haired love, who’s only response was a shrug. 

Ladyblogger created the group “Marinette & Adrien Protection Squad”

Ladyblogger has added MDCDesigns, ModelAdrien, and DJNinoKnows to the group. 

Ladyblogger: I came up with an idea to take that bish down

Hello? Anyone listening?

Marinette rolled her eyes at the impatience her best friend was displaying. “You better grab your phone, Kitty,” she teased him, her Ladybug confidence starting to show. “Looks like we’re not getting out of this so easily.”

“I might have a solution for that…,” he trailed off with a smirk, leaning in to kiss her temple, making her blush.

DJNinoKnows: you know I’m here, babe.

MDCDesigns: I’m here, I’m listening

ModelAdrien: I’m here too!

MDCDesigns: Question: is it legal?

Ladyblogger: uh… yeah… sure?

MDCDesigns: ...Alya…

Ladyblogger: listen, all we have 2 do is get Lie-la’s attention 2 dis to work.

ModelAdrien: what’s the catch?

Ladyblogger: sigh 

We’re gonna record her in the middle of a lie or a threat with a witness

This means we need something really good to catch her attention with

ModelAdrien: I might have an idea….

Marinette looked up from her phone to shoot her partner a glare. “What are you up to, Chaton?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Bugaboo,” he replied, looking up at her with a devilish smirk marring his innocent face.

She sent her most deadpan Ladybug look at him.

His smirk softened into a loving smile. “Do you trust me, M’Lady?” he asked her softly.

The designer’s face cleared with a blink of her eyelashes. “Always,” she answered him, faith, love, and trust evident in her voice.

Adrien melted at that, leaning towards her to place a soft, chaste kiss on her lips. “God, I love you,” he whispered against her lips, feeling her breath against his face.

“I love you, too,” she murmured, ready to lean back into him for another kiss.

Unfortunately, their phones pinged again, making them groan in annoyance.

“Perfect timing, Alya,” the dark-haired girl grumbled their phones pinging yet again as they turned back to their devices.

Ladyblogger: well?

We’re turning gray here waiting on you, Sunshine!

ModelAdrien: sorry, got distracted.

...Marinette Dupain-Cheng…

The dark-haired girl inhaled sharply with wide eyes boring into her screen as she waited for his next few words

ModelAdrien: … will you go out with me?

“Adrien!” She yelped, staring at him with wide eyes, totally ignoring the multiple pings blowing up her phone from the other two members of their group chat. 

The model rubbed at the back of his neck nervously with a self-conscious smile. “Well… I’ve actually wanted to ask you that once I had realized my feelings for you.”

Marinette stood there gaping at him, frozen in place as his words settled in her mind.

_‘Adrien Agreste just asked me out! ADRIEN AGRESTE JUST ASKED ME OUT!’_ Her thoughts screamed on a repeating loop.

_Marinette.exe has stopped working. Please wait for the reboot_

“M’Lady?” His quiet, uncertain sounding voice broke through the fog in her brain, making her shiver for a moment as she shook the remnants of it off.

“Did you really mean that?” The designer asked as she blinked up at the blond, twisting her fingers in insecurity.

“Every word,” the blond murmured, stilling her hands with his own. He brought one of hers up to his lips and kissed the inside of the wrist, making the dark-haired girl blush from the sensation. “You can ask Nino,” he said with a wink.

“Nino…?” She questioned, her voice trailing off as her thoughts slowly finished coming back online. Blue topaz eyes widened in realization a moment later as the dark-haired girl exclaimed, “Nino! Crap! I forgot about Group Chat!”

Adrien laughed softly as Marinette fumbled with her phone. He pulled her into his embrace with her back to his chest, his chin settling comfortably on her shoulder.

DJNinoKnows: dude! 

Seriously?!

Ladyblogger: this isnt a joke, right?

Please tell me that this wasn’t a joke?

Adrien ISTG

If ur playin’ I’m gonna murder you

ModelAdrien: I’m not playing games, Alya

But I think I broke her

Ladyblogger: Marinette? 

M? 

Gurl, are you conscious?

If you dont answer soon I’m coming over!

MDCDesigns: I’m here!

No need to come over!

“I’m not in my room, anyway,” she muttered, snuggling into her almost-boyfriend’s warm embrace, making the blond smile.

Ladyblogger: did you spazz out?

Marinette facepalmed, making Adrien laugh in response. “Damnit, Alya! Stop embarrassing me!” She whined, her voice muffled by her hand.

“I think it's pretty funny,” the model chuckled as she blindly swatted at his arm. He held her closer, making her squeak a bit as he nuzzled into her neck. “Besides,” he purred in her ear, “I think you look gorgeous when you blush.”

She dropped her hand from her face and she turned to look at him. “You really think so?” She asked in a small voice.

“I do,” he confirmed, pressing his lips to her cheek. “But I think you better reply to our friends,” he said cheekily.

The dark-haired girl rolled her eyes as she turned back to her phone screen.

MDCDesigns: no…

I… dropped my phone...

Ladyblogger: yeah

Sure

You so totally spazzed

MDCDesigns: ALYA!

DJNinoKnows: not to interrupt this awesome convo

But

Dudette

youre keeping my bro hangin

Ladyblogger: sksksksk he’s right!

So

Marinette

What’s your answer to Sunshine’s question?

MDCDesigns: yes.

ModelAdrien: Yes?

MDCDesigns: YES!

ModelAdrien: YES!

Adrien whooped with joy as he picked his new girlfriend up and spun around, causing her to laugh at his enthusiasm. 

Finishing the spin, he set her down and turned her to face him, leaning down to press his forehead against hers, their bangs intermingling, “You’ve just made me the happiest cat alive, M’Lady,” he said to her softly.

“Can't be any happier than I am,” she retorted in an equally soft voice, leaning up to kiss him before the ping of their phones interrupted them AGAIN.

The model returned them to their previous position, with him spooning her as they looked over their devices together

Ladyblogger: ajskajskajskasjk

YES!

DJNinoKnows: thats awesome!

Congrats dudes!

Ladyblogger: my second favorite ship has set sail!

ModelAdrien: second favorite?

Ladyblogger: LadyNoir is my OTP

“I should’ve known,” Marinette muttered bemusedly, shaking her head and ticking Adrien’s cheek with her hair. She texted back an “smh”, leaning further into her boyfriend’s (BOYFRIEND! ADRIEN AGRESTE IS HER BOYFRIEND!) warm embrace.

“That's another thing we should talk about,” the blond said as he smoothed down her hair from his face. “Are we together as both sides of us? Or just as Marinette and Adrien?”

She blinked at that, turning to look at him once more. “I think it would be best if we keep our superhero alter egos out of this,” the dark-haired girl said quietly, her face a mask of all of her Ladybug seriousness. “We don’t want Hawkmoth finding out about this and using our love against us.”

“She’s right,” a small, high voice added as Tikki floated over to the pair. “You two need to stay safe, now that you both know each other’s identities. Keeping your relationship separated from your alter-egos’ is probably the best way.”

“Yeah, yeah, what Sugarcube said,” Plagg said lazily as he landed in his Holder’s hair.

The Ladybug kwami shot him a glare. “Stop calling me that, you StinkySock!” she complained, stomping her little foot ineffectively in the air.

Their phones pinged again, making all four of them roll their eyes. 

“I’ll follow your lead on it,” Adrien whispered in her ear as they both turned back to the text conversation. “I’d follow you anywhere. You and me against the world.”

“Always,” she responded in kind, squeezing his arm with her free hand. “Thank you, Kitty.”

MDCDesigns: smh

DJNinoKnows: babe? 

The plan?

Ladyblogger: Right!

The Plan!

The Newly Revised Plan™ now that these two FINALLY got together!

MDCDesigns: …Alya

Ladyblogger: okay! Okay!

So the plan starts like this….

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Are you interested in reading and writing fanfiction, making fanart or cosplaying/roleplaying for Miraculous? Then [ the Miraculous Fanworks Discord Server ](https://discord.gg/mlfanworks) is the place for you! Come and join over 1000 other fans as we share, discuss, and have a general good time bonding over the Fandom we all love!


	11. Good For You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “So you’ve got what you always wanted.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter just became the longest one so far! So saddle up folks, because this one was one hell of a ride!
> 
> As always, a huge “Thank You” to [ Khanofallorcs](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Khanofallorcs/pseuds/Khanofallorcs) of being an absolutely Awesome Beta!

“Are you sure that you're okay with this?” Marinette asked her blond companion as they walked to school from the bakery the following morning.

Adrien looked to his girlfriend (GIRLFRIEND! LADYBUG WAS HIS GIRLFRIEND!) and smiled at her, taking her hand in his. “I’ll be fine, Princess. Plagg and I have it all taken care of,” he said, squeezing her hand.

The dark-haired girl sighed as she squeezed back, melting at his use of the nickname even as she worried at her bottom lip. “I know,” she acquiesced. “But I’m still a little worried. I don't want her to hurt you.”

The plan was for the two of them to come to school acting lovey-dovey, hoping that Lila would hear about it. Then the superhero pair would separate, Marinette to go with Nathaniel to talk to Ms. Bustier in regards to his project, while Adrien headed to the locker room, where he would hopefully get cornered by an irate Lila. Plagg would be in Adrien's bag, ready to use the blond’s phone to record the conversation between his Holder and the lying fox. 

“She’s not going to, I promise,” he reassured her, bringing their joined hands to his lips so he could place a kiss on her knuckles. 

She melted once more at the gesture, taking her other hand to hug his bicep. She leaned up and placed a kiss on his cheek, causing the model to blush. “You know that is not a promise that you can keep with your track record,” the designer teased, placing her head on his shoulder. She sighed in resignation, knowing that there wasn’t any other way to get the concrete evidence that they needed. “I love you,” she murmured so that only he would hear.

“I love you too, M’Lady,” he said in an even softer voice, pressing a kiss to her temple.

They entered the school building, moving away from each other slightly, but each keeping their grasp on the other's hand. They had to make it believable that they only just got together, not that they’d been fighting by each other’s side for as long as they had.

Alya noticed them first, as they had planned. They watched with quiet fascination as her eyes widened with excitement.

“O.M.G!” The junior journalist squealed, drawing attention from the nearby group consisting of Lila telling her tall tales to those who would listen. “I know that you guys told me about this last night, but I had to see it with my own eyes to believe it. Congratulations!” She exclaimed, pulling the lovebirds into a group hug.

“Thank you, Alya,” the dark-haired girl said, hugging her bespectacled friend with her free arm, her hand still entangled with the model’s. They had agreed earlier that morning to keep holding hands for as long as possible, just in case Alya's enthusiasm wasn’t noticed by a certain Italian liar.

Apparently, they didn't have to wait for very long

“Congratulations, Marinette, Adrien,” said a sickeningly sweet voice from behind them, causing the pair to turn. Lila’s olive-green eyes flashed briefly with something dangerous, causing the hairs on the back of both of their necks to stand on end in warning. “You two make a very cute couple, and I wish you all the best,” she said through gritted teeth disguised as a smile.

Marinette stood tall and squeezed her boyfriend's hand tightly. “Thank you, Lila. That is very kind of you to say,” she replied politely with a smile as she felt him return the gesture, boosting her confidence. 

“Of course,” the lying fox said flippantly as she turned to head back to her group of blind followers.

“Oh! By the way, M, Nathaniel was asking for you,” Alya said before the Italian was completely out of earshot, starting to put things in motion for the rest of their plan. “Something about a meeting with Ms. Bustier?”

“Right,” the designer nodded, not missing the calculating look that quickly passed over a certain false vixen’s face. She turned to Adrien with a nervous, but loving, smile. “I better get going,” she said softly.

“I’ll see you later, Princess,” he told her sweetly, kissing the knuckles of the hand he held before he had to let her go.

“Good luck, my prince,” she whispered, leaning up to press a fleeting kiss to his cheek before she went to find Nathaniel, Alya in tow.

Adrien watched as his girlfriend walked towards their artistic classmate, taking in her beauty and kindness once more before he turned to head into the locker room. He had also taken notice of Lila’s expression earlier and took a deep breath to ready himself for what came next.

“You sure you're ready for this, kid?” The nasal voice of his kwami was barely heard coming from his school bag. 

“As I’ll ever be,” he said quietly, to not draw attention. “Start recording, we just entered the locker room.”

“Got it. Good luck, kid,” Plagg said, disappearing into the bag to do his part of the plan.

“Thanks, Plagg,” the blond whispered with gratitude as he approached his locker.  _ ‘I think I’m gonna need it,’ _ he thought to himself. 

A well-manicured hand slammed against the door of his locker before he could open it completely, followed by the cloying scent of Christian Dior’s ‘Poison’. 

A fitting scent for such a toxic person.

“Hello, Adrien,” Lila purred, not caring much for allowing him his personal space. “Let’s have ourselves a little chat.”

Looks like the trap had sprung.

Game. Set. Match

  
  


* * *

  
  


“Thanks for helping me out with this, Marinette,” Nathaniel said to her as they exited Ms. Bustier’s classroom. 

Marinette turned to him as they walked toward the courtyard. “It was no problem, Nathaniel. I had a feeling that Lila was going to pull a stunt like this and dump all of the work on you.”

“I should’ve seen it coming, honestly,” the red-headed artist admitted with a shake of his head. “Did you know that she tried to convince me and Marc that she knew Hiro Mashima, but then named  _ Noragami _ as her favorite manga of his? That isn't one of his stories!” He exclaimed, waving his hands to show his agitation. “Mashima is known predominantly for  _ Rave Master, Fairy Tail _ , and  _ Eden’s Zero _ !  _ Noragami _ is by Adachitoka!” 

The designer smiled at her friend’s enthusiasm. “Well, she should know better than to lie about something like that around you!”

“Yeah...,” Nathaniel said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck in a nervous gesture. “About that… I’m very sorry that I didn’t speak up or take your side when you were trying to show us that she was lying.”

The dark-haired just gave him a shrug, her smile morphing into a self-deprecating one. “It’s… well, not okay, but I understand,” she said as they arrived at the courtyard. “Lila has a way of manipulating words and situations to her advantage. A lot of people were taken in by her lies.”

“Well, in any case, I still want to thank you again for saving my tail there. I know absolutely nothing about fashion, so being able to do an oil painting instead will really help my grade!”

Her smile turned into something a little more genuine this time. “You’re welcome, Nathaniel.”

“So… you and Adrien, huh?” The artist asked shyly, pushing his long bangs away from his turquoise-colored eyes. “It finally happened?”

A cherry-blossom hue spread across the apples of her cheeks as she glanced away, a far off look in her eyes. “Yeah, it did,” she breathed out, her smile softening into something gentler as she remembered the events that had happened the night before.

A hand on her shoulder brought her back to the present. “I’m happy for you, Marinette,” Nathaniel said with a smile. “It was a long time coming.”

“Thank you,” the designer replied, tucking a loose strand of hair from her signature pigtails behind her ear. “How are you and Marc doing with your comic lately?”

“Oh, well-“

“Marinette!” Nino called out to her, interrupting the conversation. “Sorry for interrupting, but have you seen Adrien? We were supposed to meet up earlier, but I haven’t seen him yet.”

_ ‘Just breathe,’ _ she told herself.  _ ‘This is all part of the plan. We need more witnesses, and the best way to get them is to cause a commotion.’ _

“I’m sorry, Nino,” she responded. “I haven’t seen him since before Nathaniel and I went to talk with Ms. Bustier.”

“The last time I saw him was when Lila came over to congratulate you,” the artist supplied. “I was in a conversation with Alix until you and I went to have our meeting, Marinette.”

The DJ clenched his jaw a little. Turning to the blue-eyed girl, he said, “I don't like this.”

“I don’t either,” she agreed, a troubling look spreading across her face. “He said he was going to grab stuff from his locker earlier. Maybe we should check there for him.”

“What’s wrong?” the red-head asked, looking from one troubled face to another. 

Taking in a deep breath, Nino answered, “Adrien told me a few days ago that Lila’s been harassing him. He didn’t want me to say anything about it, because he, and I quote, ‘didn't want to cause problems’ unquote.”

“He told me the same thing last night,” Marinette said with a fake gasp. “And she saw the two of us this morning! She even congratulated us!”

Understanding lit Nathaniel’s turquoise irises. “You don't think that she’d…,” he trailed off. 

“I have some idea of what Lila is capable of,” Marinette said quietly in a frantic tone of voice, her hands starting to shake. “She..um.. she’s done something similar to me.”

“WHAT?!” The red-head exclaimed, his eyes growing wide as the implications became clear to him.

“I need to go find him,” she said, starting towards the locker room, worry clear in her tone. 

“I’m coming with you,” the DJ said hurriedly as he followed her. 

Shaking out of his stupor, the artist called out, “I’ll grab some of the others to help.” He then turned to go gather his friends. Maybe Kim or Alix would be a good start.

“Good job,” Nino murmured as they swiftly headed towards the locker room. “That was some nice acting back there.”

“Who said that I was acting,” the dark-haired girl replied, her gemstone eyes flashing dangerously. “Now let's go rescue my boyfriend. I really don't want that toxic bitch anywhere near him anymore.”

“I agree with you there, dudette,” the bespectacled male said, a dark look crossing his otherwise pleasant face. “I hope Alya was in position and got some good footage.”

Another part of their plan was that Alya would watch where Lila would go after Marinette left Adrien. If she were to follow the blond, then the blogger would take up a position hidden away to video record their interaction, in addition to the audio recordings that the model was getting.

Essentially, they were covering all of their bases.

They reached the door of the locker room and paused, having noticed the blogger standing nearby with her camera out, a grim look on her face. Looking away from her viewfinder, the auburn-haired girl ushered them over with a bob of her head.

“It’s bad,” she whispered to them, hoping that her voice won't get picked up by her microphone. “She’s blackmailing him not only with the whole ‘deal’ that Adrien told us about, but apparently she’s been spying on him for his father.”

Anger flashed dangerously across two faces, a dark look settling on the DJ, while lightning blazed through bluebell eyes.

“She’s  _ what?!?! _ ” Marinette hissed, the ugly emotion coming off of her in waves strong enough to pique the interest of a certain psychological terrorist a few blocks over. “Oooh, that...that...that...BITCH!” She whisper-shouted, clenching her fist so tight that her knuckles went white.

“So, what’s going on here?” another voice piped up from behind them. 

The trio of friends turned around to find that the source of the question came from a narrow-eyed Alix. Kim, Max, and Nathaniel were behind her, all of them with concerned looks on their faces.

The designer shot a look at her friends, her anger still a very palpable thing that would make civil conversation near impossible for her.

Taking the signal, Nino took a deep breath to quell his own ugly emotions. “It’s Lila,” he managed to growl out. “She’s blackmailing Adrien.”

“What? Why?” A very confused Max asked. “That doesn't sound like Lila at all.”

“Because he chose to stand up for me,” Marinette ground out, anger warring with the love she felt for the blond. “Believe it or not, Lila has been threatening me for  _ months _ .”

“If that were really true, then why didn’t didn’t you say anything, Marinette?” Asked Kim with a frown.

Shame coloring her features, the dark-haired girl ducked her head and said, “I was afraid that she would twist my words around and make it so that  _ I  _ was the one who was bullying her.”

She sniffed, gathering her courage. “She told me that she would make it so that no one would believe me, that I would be all alone… she had almost succeeded,” she said as she lifted her head at her friends’ surprised gasps with tears in her eyes. “Adrien was the only one who believed me for a while.”

“We overheard her telling him,” the DJ stepped in, giving his friend a side hug for comfort.

“And we came up with a plan to stop her from doing this ever again,” said Alya, her face still glued to her phone screen, the camera app still recording video. She glanced up and over to the crowd behind her, tears building in eyes shielded by her glasses. “I just never thought that this would go so far.”

The designer nodded, knowing that her kitty was going to need some extra cuddles later. “You’re right,” she said, dashing away the tears in her eyes with the back of her hand. She started forward out of her hiding spot, a determined look on her face as she said, “Let’s pull him out of there.” 

“How…?” the pink-haired girl asked, her voice trailing off when she noticed that the DJ put out a hand to stop the rest of them.

“It's part of the plan,” he said grimly. “We need to wait for her signal.”

Adrien spied his girlfriend stepping out of her hiding place, grateful that Lila was still preoccupied with trying to break him down to notice.

However, the fox was slowly starting to succeed at breaking him.

He didn't know about the deal she made with his father, but it made sense in a sick and twisted way.

Now he knew how she became his father's “muse.”

So she thought that she held all of the cards right now? That she was in charge?

Time to prove this bitch wrong once and for all.

**_“Well I hope you're proud of your big decision,”_ ** he said in a low voice, cutting into the false vixen’s irritating rant.

“Excuse me?” Lila asked with an attitude coloring her voice.

**_“Yeah, I hope it's all that you want and more,”_ ** the model said darkly, sarcasm dripping through every word.

The deceitful Italian scoffed, “Of course it is. I always get what I want.”

**_“Now you're free from the agonizing life you were living before,”_ ** he began to sing.

“Not yet,” the sausage-haired girl said smugly. “But I will be.”

**_“And you say what you need to say so that you get to walk away,”_ ** the blond continued as he started to advance on his prey, making the false fox move more into the center of the room. **_“It would kill you to have to stay trapped when you've got something new.”_ **

Olive-colored eyes narrowed in calculation. “I tell people what they want to hear to get what I want. If they are too stupid to fact-check, then it's on them.”

**_“Well I'm sorry you had it rough, and I'm sorry_ ** **you’re** **_not enough,”_ ** he sang mockingly, nodding slightly in Marinette’s direction for her to start making her move.

**_“Thank God they rescued you.”_ **

“What are you -“

**_“So you got what you always wanted, so you got your dream come true. Good for you,”_ ** Adrien sang in a low voice, nearly growling as he continued to mock the vixen in front of him.“ **_Good for you, you, you._ ** ”

“ **_Got a taste of a life so perfect,_ ** ” Marinette picked up the melody, her voice a perfect counterpoint to the blond’s as she walked over to stand beside him, slipping her hand into his and giving it a reassuring squeeze.  **_“So you did what you had to do. Good for you,”_ ** She sang, leveling her fiery gemstone glare at the brunette. **_“Good for you.”_ **

“That's the signal,” Nino sighed, ushering the rest of their classmates into the room, starting with the blogger, who was still recording.

“Damn right it was perfect!” Lila shouted, no longer caring who was listening, nor the fact that she was currently being recorded. “I told people exactly what they wanted to hear to get things to go my way!”

A gasp was heard throughout the room, making the vixen aware that it was no longer just her and her primary victims in the room anymore.

“So you lied about everything that you have ever told us?” Alya asked, repressed anger lacing through her words and making her hands and the camera shake slightly. “The people you know? The places that you’ve been? The connections you have? All of your quote-unquote  _ disabilities?” _

The liar could feel herself getting backed into the proverbial corner, but her pride wouldn’t let her remain quiet. “Yes! But your goody two-shoe  _ friends _ wouldn’t follow along, so they needed some… incentives.”

“Incentives,” Nino said in a deadpan voice as he entered the room last, a dark look crossing his features. “You fucking blackmailed them.”

An ugly look worked its way onto the false fox’s face. “So you are smarter than you look,” she snarked. “Certainly smarter than your girlfriend over here.”

**_“Does it cross your mind to be slightly sorry?”_ ** The junior reporter snarled, anger and insult marring her face from behind her viewfinder.  **_“Do you even care that you might be wrong?”_ **

“Wrong? Ha!” Lila said mockingly “ I don't think so-“

**_“Was it fun?”_ ** Alya cut the liar off, her voice growling in a familiar sing-song pattern.  **_“Well, I hope you had a blast while you dragged me along...”_ **

“What are you-“

**_“And you say what you need to say,”_ ** this time it was the DJ who had cut her off, his usually chill demeanor had been replaced with quiet rage as he picked up on his girlfriend's line of thought.  **_“And you play who you need to play, and if somebody's in your way, crush them and leave them behind.”_ **

**_“Well I guess if I'm not of use, go ahead, you can cut me loose,”_ ** the pair sang at her sarcastically, each one in perfect harmony with the other.  **_“Go ahead now, I won't mind.”_ **

“What is with all of you singing?” Lila growled out, frustrated beyond comprehension.

Adrien and Marinette glanced at each other, worried at the current turn of events. They kept an eye out, hoping that their friends were not about to be akumatized over this.

“What is going on here?!” Ms. Bustier exclaimed as she entered the locker room to find her missing class surrounding one Lila Rossi, Mr. Damocles not far behind her.

Seeing her opportunity and taking it, the false fox turned on the crocodile tears. “Oh, Ms.Bustier! Mr. Damocles! They’re all bullying me,” she sobbed, using her acting skills to the best of her ability.

The two adults blinked, taking in the larger group of students before they glanced at each other in bewilderment.

“That is not true!” Marinette shouted accusingly, her eyes flashing with blue fire. “Lila is the bully!”

Mr. Damocles held his hand up, issuing silence from everyone in the room. “Do you have any evidence?” He intoned gravely, his eyes scanning the crowd before him.

“I do,” Adrien said as he stepped forward, holding out his phone. The screen showed that the audio recording program was still running. He turned it off before handing over the device to the principal. “There is an audio file right here with at least the last thirty minutes recorded on it.

A pair of olivine eyes sent the blond a murderous glare.

“And I have at least twenty-five minutes of video recording on mine,” Alya said as she stepped beside the blond, holding her phone out as well. “It shows Lila threatening and harassing Adrien, as well as her “confessing” to lying about both her absences  _ and  _ her disabilities.”

Teeth were bared this time also, betrayal evident in the brunette’s Mediterranean features.

Both adults raised their eyebrows in astonishment. “Is that so,” Mr. Damocles said thoughtfully, furrowing his bushy gray brows over his honey-colored eyes. 

No one noticed the dark butterfly entering the room, except for one young lady.

“Well, Lila,” the elder gentleman started as he turned towards the crafty Italian. “What do you have to say for yourself?”

The butterfly made contact, absorbing itself into a bracelet resting on her right wrist.

“I’d say... you're too late,” said the false fox with an evil smirk, her voice ringing with triumph. A bright magenta mask appeared on her face as she cried out “I accept... Hawkmoth.”

A dark miasma covered the girl from head to toe starting at the contact point. The crowd of students and administrators quickly dispersed, most running off to the safety provided behind locked doors. 

All except for two.

“She’s probably going to be after both of us,” Marinette panted as they ran for cover, looking for an ideal hideaway to transform into.

“...wait…,” Adrien panted as he grabbed her hand and slowed them to a stop. “She’s more than likely to go after me than you. Go hide and transform, I’ll buy you some time.”

The dark-haired girl gave him an incredulous look. “Are you crazy?!” She exclaimed, tears gathering at the corners of her eyes.

“Crazy for you, Bugaboo,” he replied quietly with a wink. He moved closer towards her, and leaned in, taking her face gently into his hands. “I love you, and I know that you will do everything you can to put things right,” he said, as he bent down further, pressing his forehead against hers.

She grabbed onto his wrists and nuzzled her face into his palms for a few precious seconds. “I love you too, Chaton,” she whispered to him, her tears tipping over to fall onto her porcelain cheeks. “Please be safe,” she murmured as she kissed the palm of his right hand, then the left.

“I’ll do my best,” the blond promised softly as he drew back, pressing a kiss to her forehead before he left her embrace. “Now go!”

With tears in her eyes, she turned from him and ran, calling herself a coward and hating every single centimeter that she put between herself and the love of her life.

She paused a few feet after she turned a corner a few corridors down the hall from where she left him, hearing him egging the Akuma on to follow him away from her.

“My name is Honest Truth, and I will seek my vengeance!” The dark-haired girl heard the Akuma yell, the voice growing distant as it honed in on Adrien’s taunts.

“Marinette, are you alright?” Tikki asked as she phased through the dark-haired girl's purse to check in with her charge.

Marinette stared at her with wide, teary eyes, her thoughts going about a million miles a minute. “To be honest, Tikki? Not really,” she said with a self-deprecating smile. She began to pace for a moment, knowing that she needed to get back out there. Adrien was holding the Akuma off, but he wasn’t transformed….

And that scared the hell out of her.

**_“All I need is some time to think, but the boat is about to sink,”_ ** the designer muttered in a slightly hysterical tone of voice. **_“Can't erase what_ ** **we** **_wrote in ink…”_ **

“Is this the right time to be quoting Dear Evan Hansen? Right now?” An exasperated Tikki asked, gesturing in the general direction of the Akuma.

**_“Tell me how could you change the story?”_ ** Marinette shot back at the kwami, feeling her nerves stretch thin. **_“All the words that I can't take back...Like a train coming off the track…'Cause the rails and my bones all crack…,”_ ** she took deep panting breaths in between each phrase, trying to calm herself down so that she could do her heroic job. The dark-haired girl swallowed hard, some traitorous tears spilling over her lash line as she took in one last breath and belted out,  **_“I've got to find a way to stop it, stop it! Just let me off!”_ **

A moment of silence, then another passed before the words “Feel better?” was asked by the little red embodiment of creation to her Holder in a somewhat flat voice.

The young Guardian blinked, coming back to her senses. “Strangely enough… I do!” She exclaimed quietly as she turned back to her special little friend. “Let’s do this!”

“Just say the words!” Tikki perked up, ready to face the job at hand.

With a determined smirk, Marinette Dupain-Cheng called out in a strong voice, “Tikki… Spots on!”

  
  
  


“Great plan you came up with, kid!” Plagg yelled out sarcastically as he clung to his hiding place in Adrien’s inner shirt pocket.

“It was the best that I could do under the circumstances,” the blond growled out as he continued to evade the Akuma’s advances. “I knew that Lila would most likely go after me rather than Marinette, as I was the one who last confronted her.”

“That’s true,” the kwami conceded begrudgingly. “But now you can’t hide and transform!”

“Maybe not,” the teen panted, looking around at what appeared to be a dead end. He turned around and noticed two things. One was that the Akuma wasn't too far away, but definitely still out of earshot.

Adrien smirked when he noticed the second thing. “But she could,” he said quietly to the embodiment of destruction in his pocket, carefully nodding in the direction of the blur of scarlet heading towards them.

The cat-like being shook his head as he buried himself further into his hiding place and muttered, “I don't get enough cheese for this. Wake me up when it's go time, will ya?”

“You got it, buddy,” the model replied, taking up a defensive stance as the Akuma got closer.

“Adrien! Get out of here! Go take cover!” The spotted heroine shouted as she jumped in front of him, spinning her yo-yo out like a shield.

But it was too late, she realized, watching the horrified expression cross his face as he shouted, “Ladybug! Watch out!”

A Truth Beam hit her just then, the force of it knocking her back into the blond model. They wound up sprawled on the floor near a hidden empty hallway, one that they both knew was an ideal place to transform.

Ladybug’s nerve endings felt like they were set on fire, pain firing across the synapses, compelling her to spill her secrets to kill the sensation. She looked up at her un-transformed partner with wide, teary eyes and whispered through gritted teeth, “I love you, Kitty. Now get out of here.”

He nodded at her as he scrambled to get his feet under him, hoping that Honest Truth wouldn’t take notice of him disappearing to go transform. “I’ll see you soon, Lovebug,” he whispered back as he crept towards the hallway.

“Well, well, well, Looks like I caught a little, pesky _bug,”_ The Akuma chuckled darkly. “The truth is painful, isn't it? And the pain continues to build until you speak your truth,” She said with a sneer as she circled Ladybug. 

“Let’s find out who you are behind the mask, shall we?” Said Honest Truth, an ugly, devious-looking smirk spreading across her already grotesque features. “Who are you?”

“I’m Ladybug,” the spotted heroine said quietly, surprising even herself. The pain of the compulsion had lessened significantly, allowing her to breathe a little freely.

“No, really. Who. Are. You?”

“I’m Ladybug,” the dark-haired girl said with even more strength in her voice, the words settling within her with a warmth of which she had never known, replacing the pain almost in its entirety. It spread from her heart, like fire running through her veins, to the very tips of every nerve ending in her body, igniting them all.

It made her feel bold, courageous, powerful.

It made her feel… miraculous.

“Listen here you little twerp,” Honest Truth snarled, grabbing the midnight-haired heroine by the wrist. “WHO. ARE. YOU?!”

“With or without my mask,” the girl said in a calm, serious voice. “I am and will always be Ladybug,” she declared with confidence, feeling more at one with herself than ever. It was as if the two halves of herself finally reconciled with the other. She noticed a familiar black shape out of the corner of her eye and grabbed the Akuma's wrist that held hers, the one with the corrupted object, and yelled for her partner. “Chat Noir!”

“CATACLYSM!” He hollered as he ran past, brushing his fingers against the large leather cuff bracelet, turning it to dust, and freeing the butterfly hiding within.

Not wanting to waste any more time than necessary, the spotted hero dropped the Akuma victim's arm and whipped out her yo-yo, catching the corrupted butterfly with ease. A moment or so later, a white, purified one was released from the device.

“Bye-bye little butterfly,” Ladybug called out her signature phrase, sensing her partner coming up beside her.

“You never called for your Lucky Charm,” he observed in a low voice close to her ear. “Will you be able to revert the damage?”

“I...I think so,” she answered her partner quietly, a light shining from her eyes in the realization of what came out of her mouth. “That must be true!” She said laughingly, closing her eyes in relief. “Oh thank goodness.”

“Ladybug? Chat Noir?” A voice called out from behind them in obviously fake confusion, making the pair of heroes roll their eyes and grimace. Neither one of them wanted to deal with this particular victim.

They turned in unison, both wearing stony expressions as they observed the troublemaker in front of them. With a tight smile, Ladybug said, “Hello again, Lila.” 

“Was...was I akumatized again?” The deceitful creature simpered, playing the role of victim and dialing it up to eleven. “I am  _ so, _ so sorry! I was being bullied at my school and-“

“Save it, Lila,” the spotted heroine cut her off, her voice sounding tired and a little bored. “We know that you weren’t being bullied.”

Confusion colored the false fox’s features. “What are you-“

“Adrien told us,” Chat cut her off this time, his voice nearing a growl. “He said that you threatened his girlfriend a few days ago, then threatened him this morning.”

“And that this time, there were witnesses,” Ladybug added in. “Sorry, Lila, but there is no getting out of it this time. Let’s go,” she said, taking one of the Italian’s arms, her partner taking the other.

“Where...where are we going?” The vixen asked with alarm in her olivine eyes. 

“Why, the principal’s office, of course!” The dark-haired hero answered. “You didn't think that you were going to get away without punishment, now did you?”

“You did the crime, so you now get to do the time” Chat quipped, a satisfied smirk spreading across his face. 

“But… but… but..,” Lila sputtered, feeling indignant that for the first time, she wasn't able to get away scot-free.

“What’s the matter, Lila?” Chat asked cheekily, looking very much like the cat who got the cream. “Didn’t you always want the attention on you?” 

Ladybug hummed a familiar tune before murmuring,  **_“So you got what you always wanted...So you got your dream come true, good for you! Good for you, you, you.”_ **

**_“Got a taste of a life so perfect,”_ ** the cat-themed hero caught on, his voice blending in perfectly with his partner’s. **_“Now you say that you're someone new. Good for you! Good for you!”_ **

**_“Good for you! Good for you!”_ ** The costumed teenagers each sang out with a grin, further confusing the troublemaker in their grasp.  **_“So you got what you always wanted,”_ ** they declared as they deposited the girl in front of Mr. Damocles.

“Miss Rossi, please step inside,” the principal said sternly, ushering the brunette towards his office, where it appeared that her mother was present.

With a final glare at the heroes, Lila Rossi lowered her head in defeat and stepped inside to face her consequences.

Ladybug turned away from the door and threw her yo-yo into the air, shouting for a “Lucky Charm!”

The magic coalesced and attained solid form, dropping into the heroine’s arms as a familiar object.

A  _ very _ familiar object.

She stared at it for a long moment before she glanced up at her partner with a dumbfounded look on her face. “It's a sketchbook,” she said numbly.

“That's not just any sketchbook,” the black-clad hero breathed out slowly, pulling his gaze from the charm in her hands to look her in the eye. “It’s  _ your _ sketchbook, M’Lady.” 

“But...why?” 

Chat’s face softened into a look of fondness and admiration for the girl before him, the love he had for her filling him to the brim. “I think I know why,” he purred quietly, a soft smile appearing on his face. “And I think that you do too.”

The memory of her moment of truth sparked in her mind just then, and with it came that feeling of oneness once more. She looked down at the Lucky Charm again with a tear in her eye and whispered, “Thank you, Tikki.”

Ladybug then shifted the sketchbook to one hand and tightened her grip on it. She took a deep breath and threw it as high as she could into the air, shouting, “Miraculous Ladybug!”

A few feet away from the principal's office, Alya lowered her boyfriend’s phone from her view, a satisfied grin had spread across her face at the sight of justice that had been served. “That was an awesome fight, wasn’t it, Nino?” She asked as the swarm of magical ladybugs flew past them to spread their cure, the heroes before them bumped their fists and called “Pound it!”

“I don't know,” the DJ said, making an indescribable face. “That whole ‘I am Ladybug’ theme? Wasn't that, like, a Moana song? I thought this was a Dear Evan Hansen themed fic?”

The Ladyblogger groaned and pinched the bridge of her nose. “Stop breaking the fourth wall, Nino!” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And thank you to my friends in the [ the Miraculous Fanworks Discord Server ](https://discord.gg/mlfanworks) for encouraging me to put in the ending of this chapter! As I was writing those lines, I just thought that it would be something to bring a little levity to this piece, and many of them agreed with me!   
> If you’re looking for a place to hang out in with a bunch of very encouraging people, go check it out! We’re always glad to meet you!


	12. Words Fail

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 🎵“Words fail, words fail, there's nothing I can say. Except, sometimes, you see everything you wanted, and sometimes, you see everything you wish you had  
> And it's right there, right there, right there in front of you. And you want to believe it's true. So you... make it true. And you think maybe everybody wants it, and needs it... a little bit... too”🎵

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, a huge “Thank You” to [ Khanofallorcs](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Khanofallorcs/pseuds/Khanofallorcs) for being an absolutely Awesome Beta!

  
  
  


“Are you alright, kitty?” Ladybug asked him, as the superhero pair landed in an abandoned alleyway just outside of their school, a concerned look crossing her face.

“I...I’m not sure, M’Lady. Just… why would my father want to spy on me? I would’ve answered almost any question that he had if he had just… asked me,” Chat Noir said in a sorrowful voice that was also colored with puzzlement

“And why choose her to do it? She is such a manipulative liar and surely wouldn’t have told him something even remotely true,” the cat-themed hero growled out, his belt-tail lashing as tears began to gather at the corners of his feline eyes.

“Why couldn't he just… talk to me?” He sobbed out, clutching his partner close as she embraced him, his transformation running out as his tears began to fall.

“I’m so, so sorry, Adrien,” the spotted hero said in a hushed voice with tears in her eyes as she held him close, running her gloved fingers in his hair to calm him even as her own emotions overwhelmed her.  **_“I never meant to make it such a mess… I never thought that it would go this far. So I just stand here sorry, searching for something to say,”_ ** she sang brokenly, tears coating her throat. “ **_Something to say,”_ ** She choked out before she swallowed, took a deep and tried again. **_“Words fail, words fail… There's nothing I can say,”_ ** she finally got out, dropping her head despondently onto his shoulder.

“This isn't your fault in any way, Marinette,” the model assured the spotted heroine as he moved away from her to wipe at his eyes. He then moved his hand to her cheek to thumb her tears away. “My father has never been an easy man to understand. I just wish I knew why he has done this the way that he has.”

“He seems to be a … protective man?” The dark-haired girl guessed, earning a small smirk from her boyfriend and a cackle from his now hidden kwami.

“More like over-protective,” the young man scoffed. “I told you on the first day that we met that I never had friends before, other than Chloe. I didn't have a choice with her, our mothers were very close, so we were pretty much forced to be friends together,” he said with a half-hearted shrug.

**_“I guess I thought I could be part of this. I never had this kind of thing before,”_ ** the blond sang sadly, thinking of just how sheltered his parents had tried to keep him. He looked up at her in admiration, a small, self-deprecating smile gracing his features. **_“I never had that perfect girl, who somehow could see the good part of me.”_ **

“I’m not by any means perfect, Adrien,” Ladybug reasoned, smoothing his bangs back away from his face, only for it to flop forward once more. “I have done so many things that I’m...not exactly proud of.” She made a face at that, shaking off the memories of every single stupid thing that she did to try to get the blond to see her as something more. “ **_That's not a worthy explanation. I know there is none.”_ ** She sang softly, shaking her head in exasperation of her younger self. **_”Nothing can make sense of all these things I've done…”_ **

The young Guardian looked up at him with doleful eyes, searching his tsavorite stare for some sign of understanding of what she was trying to tell him.

**_“Words fail, words fail, there's nothing I can say. Except, sometimes, you see everything you wanted, and sometimes, you see everything you wish you had, a_ ** **_nd it's right there, right there, right there in front of you,”_ ** she sang as she took his hands in hers, looking down at them as she rubbed her thumbs over his knuckles. **_“And you want to believe it's true. So you... make it true. And you think maybe everybody wants it, and needs it... a little bit... too”_ **

“I’m not perfect either, Bugaboo,” Adrien said, bringing one of their hands up to press a kiss to her wrist.  **_“This_ ** **is** **_just a sad invention. It_ ** **isn't** **_real, I know,”_ ** he said, pointing at his face while giving her one of his model smiles.

“Oh stop,” Ladybug giggled, placing her right hand over her partner’s heart. “Unlike your smile, the rest of you is  _ very  _ real. I’m certain of it, Adrien.”

The blond shook his head, his model smile morphing yet again into something that still looked self-deprecating.  **_“No, I'd rather pretend I'm something better than these broken parts,”_ ** he sang softly, tears gathering once again in his gemstone eyes as he felt Plagg’s silent purr through his shirt’s pocket.  **_“Pretend I'm something other than this mess that I am. 'Cause then I don't have to look at it and no one gets to look at it. No, no one can really see…”_ **

“I do,” she said carefully, cutting him off. It was her turn to wipe away his tears, careful to do so with her gloved hands “I do see you, and you are anything but broken, Chaton. You are wonderful, and amazing, and the kindest person that I have ever met-“

“Then why doesn't he see that,” the blond spat out, dropping his head to her shoulder to hide his face in shame. “He expects me to be perfect  _ all  _ of the time, but he doesn't  _ see ME,”  _ he emphasized, sobbing as he did so.

“...I...I don't know,” the spotted hero stammered out, truly at a loss for words. “But he’s missing out on a truly wonderful person,” she said as she wrapped him in a warm embrace. “It's his loss, really. He’s so stuck up his own ass that he doesn't see just how bright you shine.”

Adrien couldn't help but let out a wet chuckle at her words. “How do you always know just what to say to make me feel better, M’Lady?”

She shrugged a single shoulder, not wanting to dislodge the boy leaning on her. “It’s a gift,” she said blithely, earning yet another chuckle from the model. “But I do kind of know how you feel.”

He pulled back slightly to look at her, his peridot gaze locking onto her gemstone irises. “What do you mean?” He asked.

“Being Ladybug is like that for me,” she said quietly, averting her gaze from his. “That exhausting need to be perfect, even when you know that one wrong move will bring devastating results.”

She looked back to him, and said, “Because that’s happened, too.”

A look of understanding dawned on his face as he breathed out one name, “Master Fu.”

She nodded grimly, closing her eyes to fight against the tears that threatened to fall.

“Oh, Bug,” the blond said with a sigh, hugging her fiercely. “That wasn’t entirely your fault.” 

“Maybe not,” she hiccuped, squeezing him back tightly. “But I forgot to de-transform before going to him.”

“We were too busy trying to fight Mayura, that we didnt see Hawkbutt come out of his hidey-hole,” he said in a calm tone of voice, rubbing her back in soothing patterns.

“Still, I should’ve kept my eyes open. I should’ve de-transformed -”

“If you had, then Hawkmoth would’ve found out who you were,” he argued, holding her by the biceps and giving her a gentle shake. “Then it would have definitely been game over, Bugaboo.”

“I still-“

“Why?”

**_“'Cause I've learned to slam on the brake,''_ ** she cried out, her tears now falling freely from her blue topaz eyes.  **_“Before I even turn the key, before I make the mistake, before I lead with the worst of me. I_ ** **can** **_never let them see the worst of me.”_ **

She buried her face in his chest just as her transformation ran out, leaving a crying Marinette where Ladybug once stood.

**_“'Cause what if everyone saw?”_ ** She choked out, tears heavily coating her voice.  **_“What if everyone knew? Would they like what they saw? Or would they hate it too?”_ **

“No one would hate you, Princess,” Adrien cooed, running his hand over her hair, smoothing down a few flyaway locks. 

“Lila and Chloe do,” she muttered, her voice coming out muffled as she continued to press her face into his shirt.

“Then let me rephrase that,” he said as he stifled a chuckle. “ _ No one who matters _ would hate you. Besides, Chloe is currently still in New York with her mother, and will be so disappointed that she missed the witch-hunt that happened today.”

This pulled a small snort from the girl in his arms.

“There they are!”

The model looked up to see their friends racing towards them, worried looks morphing into relief as they spotted the superhero pair. He looked down to see how his girlfriend was fairing, and noticed that she was still hiding herself against his chest. “Speaking of people who matter…,” he said teasingly, earning a pout and a poke to his belly from a certain dark-haired girl.

Alya reached them first, followed by a wheezing Nino, who was cursing his lack of physicality under his breath

“Are you guys okay?” The blogger asked in a barely winded voice, taking note of their red rimmed eyes and disheveled appearance. “We saw Lila go after you two.”

“She was really after me,” the blond said sheepishly, removing an arm from around Marinette to rub at the back of his neck. “When I realized it, I made Marinette go and hide.”

“And it killed me to do that,” the designer said in response, rubbing at her eyes with the heel of her palm. “Please don’t do that again,” she practically begged.

Adrien gave her a smile that nearly melted her where she stood. “Your safety matters the most to me, Princess,” he said lovingly.

“You sap,” she laughed up at him, blue eyes sparkling. “Your safety matters too, you know.”

“You guys are about to give me cavities with how sweet you two are,” the auburn-haired girl said dryly with a roll of her eyes. “Anyway, Ms. Bustier and Mr. Damocles cancelled our classes for the day because of Lila, so Nino and I thought that we could convince the two of you to come out with us to shoot a video.”

Marinette looked to her boyfriend and shrugged. “I’m good with that, are you?”

“What father doesn’t know won’t hurt him,” the blond said to her with a grin. “Besides, I have an idea for which song we should actually perform, if that is okay with you, Marinette?”

The dark-haired girl gave him a smirk worthy of Ladybug herself as she purred, “I’m open to suggestions…”

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I figured that today was the 12th of February, so here is Chapter 12. 
> 
> Happy Lunar New Year, everyone!
> 
> Also, I may be posting 2 more works later today, because today is also my birthday, and I feel like it. So look out for a one-shot called Hurts To Be Human, and Chapter 1 of my next story, a classic retelling of The Last Unicorn.


	13. So Big/So Small

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 🎵“And I knew there would be moments that I'd miss, and I knew there would be space I couldn't fill. And I knew I'd come up short a billion different ways...and I did... and I do… and I will.”🎵

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, a huge “Thank You” to [ Khanofallorcs](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Khanofallorcs/pseuds/Khanofallorcs) for being an absolutely Awesome Beta!

“Sir? We have a … situation.”

“What is it, Nathalie?” The elder Agreste asked in an irritated voice, not removing his gaze from the images on the tablet before him.

“Our...informant has been compromised,” his assistant said hesitantly.

This caused Gabriel to pause what he was working on and look up at her from under furrowed brows. He set aside his tablet with the design that was currently giving him trouble to steeple his fingers in front of his face, tapping his index fingers against his lips. “How did this happen?” He asked solemnly.

“It appears that she has outed herself,” Nathalie said in an impassive voice, though her blue eyes took on a steely look. “She was caught in both an audio and video recording threatening to blackmail Adrien.”

“She WHAT?!” The tall man exclaimed, standing up swiftly from his desk with such force that his chair had fallen over. “Nathalie, get our law team on the phone right now!”

“They’ve already been contacted, sir. Miss Rossi will be served in just a few hours. I also have reason to believe that she may be deported back to Italy with a ban to never step foot onto Parisian soil again.”

“Good, good, that’s...that’s good,” Gabriel said with a sigh. “Please let me know when Adrien gets home. I’d like to have a word with him.”

The assistant looked at him over her glasses, “And will you be telling him why you had someone spying on him?” 

The elder Agreste winced at that, before breathing out a deep sigh. “I guess I have no choice in the matter, do I?” 

“No, I don't believe that you do, Sir,” she said as she turned away from him to head back to her desk, silently shaking her head and muttering something about how all Agreste men were thick-headed.

Later that day, the front door of the Agreste mansion opened, with Adrien entering the cold, expansive foyer laughing and holding hands with Marinette, with Alya and Nino coming in behind them.

It was the first time in a long while that that kind of warmth had entered through those imposing doors.

“Adrien,” came a voice from the top of the stairs, drawing the eyes of the four friends to the form of one Gabriel Agreste standing imposingly at the top of the staircase. Cold, gray eyes cunningly scanned over the group, looking for weaknesses. He took notice of the way the bespectacled pair seemed to freeze at the sight of him, but the dark-haired girl at his son’s side didn’t even tremble. If anything, she seemed to be giving his son her strength.

He raised a brow when he saw their hands locked together, Adrien's hand holding hers tightly.

“I need to have a word with you,” the tall man spoke, bringing his attention back to his son’s face. “Privately.”

The blond teen's face took on a grim expression as he straightened his posture, every inch of him seemed poised to disagree…

Then he stopped and looked to the girl beside him in confusion.

She gave him a meaningful look, then looked back at their friends very quickly before turning back to the elder Agreste.

“Of course, Sir,” she told him sincerely. She then turned to Adrien and said quietly, “You should talk to him. We still have time to work on our project together.”

“Are you sure?” the blond murmured, his eyes searching hers. “I don’t want to leave you guys in the lurch.”

She smiled up at him beatifically. “I’m positive. You need this, and I’m sure that Alya and Nino can find a few more embarrassing places for me to sing in public.”

He smiled down at her softly. “You sing beautifully, Marinette,” he said as he took their joined hands and brought them to his lips, kissing the back of hers. It was a motion that his father definitely did not miss. “I’ll call you later, then.”

“I look forward to it, Handsome,” she said, her cheeks tinged with a rosy hue. Marinette then turned to their friends and ushered them out. It was then that Gabriel noticed what appeared to be a violin case strapped to her back.

Turning his attention back to his son, he noticed Adrien giving the dark-haired girl (Marinette, he mentally corrected himself) a fond look as she left before squaring his shoulders and turning to look at his father with a cold expression. An expression that the elder Agreste never remembered gracing the young man's features before.

“You wished to speak to me,” the blond asked formally, his voice as cold as the look on his face.

For some reason, that deeply disturbed Gabriel.

The taller man nodded solemnly. “Yes. Let’s take this discussion to your room, then, please.”

With a curt nod, the teen started up the stairs to his room, his father following behind him.

Adrien entered his room and waited for his father to enter before closing the door. He shucked off his school bag, placing it near his desk before he went to sit on his piano bench, facing away from the beautiful instrument with his arms crossed, staring impassively at his father.

He wasn't pleased that he had to postpone his plans to work on his project with Marinette and his friends, but his girlfriend was right: he needed to have this talk with his father and find out why the elder Agreste had stooped to this level.

Gabriel settled himself on the teen’s couch, facing the blond. His back was straight as he turned to face his son, slightly taken aback by the look still remaining on the blond’s face.

Clearing his throat, he began, “I heard that Miss Rossi was harassing you today-”

“She was harassing me every day,” Adrien said blandly, cutting the older man off. “Both sexually and non-sexually. Not that you cared when I told you that in the past.” 

This caused Gabriel’s eyes to widen. Had he really been so blind?

Adrien leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees as he stared his father down. “What I want to know is if what she had said was true. Lila is a notorious liar, but she told me that the two of you had made some sort of a deal that involved her spying on me.”

The elder Agreste saw the out that his son provided, and very nearly took it. But he saw the hard glint in his son’s green eyes, eyes that looked so much like his mother’s, and decided that the time had come to own up to what he had done.

“I did,” Gabriel said stoically, watching his son’s face morph from impassive to downright furious. 

“What..how.. _ why?!” _ The young man sputtered, standing up to pace with his hands in his hair as he came to terms with what his father just told him. 

He stopped before his wall of windows before he turned around to glare at the man he shared DNA with.

“Explain,” he nearly growled out. “I just told you that she was a notorious liar, but did you know that she has threatened Marinette multiple times, hell, she's had the girl EXPELLED for crying out loud, and that she’s threatened  _ me  _ today! So please, explain to me why you decided to let that  _ lying fox _ spy on me for you!”

Gabriel was quiet for a moment, gathering his thoughts on how to explain himself. “She approached me one day and told me that there were people who were taking advantage of you.” He said in a matter-of-fact kind of tone. “So I had her spy on you to make certain that there were no… undesirables that were trying to influence you”

“Let me guess, the people that she included in that list of “undesirables” were Nino, Alya, and Marinette, right?” Adrien said in a sarcastic tone of voice, causing his father to glance at him sharply.

“They were mentioned…”

“Son of a -“ the blond cut himself off before he could get into trouble for cursing in front of his father, making some unintelligible noises instead to express his frustration.

“I now realize that her motives were… unsavory,” the elder Agreste said in a disdainful tone of voice. “Rest assured that Miss Rossi will no longer be allowed within a forty-five-meter radius from you from now on.”

“That’s a relief,” the teen muttered to himself before turning his focus back to the man in front of him. “Thank you, but I still don't understand…. Why couldn't you just ask me yourself? I would have gladly told you about my day, the people I’m hanging out with, the things that I’m either learning or doing if you had just...asked,” he implored, his gaze beseeching his father for answers to the questions that plagued him.

“Ever since your mother… disappeared, it’s … been difficult,” Gabriel said hesitantly, something very uncharacteristic for the normally stoic man. He closed his eyes as he tried to find the right words to say. “Your mother could light up a room by simply entering it,” he said with a small, sad smile. He then opened his eyes and looked at the young man who was his son, “You are like her in so, so many ways.”

The blond blinked at that, looking at his father curiously.

It was rare that the man would talk about his mother at all, so hearing what little he could about her filled a little of the yawning chasm that she had left behind.

**_“_ ** Then she was gone, and… **_and the house felt so big, and I felt so small...The house felt so big, and I—,”_ ** Gabriel cut himself off with a sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose with the fingers of his left hand. **_“And I knew there would be moments that I'd miss, and I knew there would be space I couldn't fill,”_ ** he said despairingly, dropping his hand before looking up at his son with sad eyes, the cool gray still not meeting the verdant green that reminded him so much of better times. **_“And I knew I'd come up short a billion different ways...and I did... and I do… and I will.”_ **

Adrien blinked at that as well, as it had sounded like the lyrics of a ‘Dear Evan Hansen’ song.

What was with this play that its lyrics followed him everywhere?

“And I’m sorry for that,” the elder Agreste concluded, drawing the teen from his thoughts. “Your mother was so much better in more situations than I am. Especially parenting situations.” He said with a sigh as he stood up from the couch to make his way to the door. “I’m not ashamed to admit that I miss her dearly.”

“Father.”

The sound of his son’s voice stopped him, drawing his focus to the blond.

“I miss her too, terribly so. But… it doesn’t excuse you for the things that you’ve done,” the teen said with gritted teeth. “You’ve broken my trust, and I’m not sure that you can earn it back right away”

“I know, son,” Gabriel said in a low voice, swallowing down the unexpected lump in his throat. “I know.”

The guilt he had heard in his father’s voice calmed the model’s ire for the time being, making him feel as if the older man might finally understand where he was coming from.

“I don’t think that you're a bad parent,” Adrien said in a quietly determined voice, his tsavorite eyes glistening with unshed tears. “But we definitely need to communicate better. No more spying on me, no more overscheduling, no more dictating my every move. If you want to know what is going on in my life, then we need to be able to talk to each other, and  _ not _ through Nathalie.” He paused to take a breath before asking, “We can work on making this happen, right?”

The tall man searched the teen’s face for a moment, reading the sincerity that he found there. With a small smile and a nod, he answered, “Right. I will see you at dinner.”

Then a thought occurred to the elder man, remembering an action that took place in his own foyer.

He turned back to the blond and said, “I almost forgot, what is going on with you and Miss Dupain-Cheng?”

“Oh, that,” Adrien said, rubbing the back of his neck in a nervous gesture with a sheepish expression on his face. “That is a very… recent development.”

“Indeed,” his father said with an impassive look on his face.

“Just so you know, I asked her out first,” the blond rushed out. “She is just so amazingly kind, smart, creative, and has the best singing voice that you’ve ever heard. Did you know that she has perfect pitch too?”

“Is that so,” Gabriel said, making a mental note to not akumatize the dark-haired girl. No need to have someone figure out his supervillain identity because she recognized the sound of his voice. “Is that why you asked to have your piano looked at?”

“Yeah, Marinette mentioned that it was about a half step off…”

Father and son continued their conversation until Gabriel had to take his leave and the younger Agreste was feeling fulfilled at finally having a full conversation with his parental unit. He flopped onto his bed and laid on his back to stare up at the ceiling, the memories of the day washing over him.

“Feeling better?” A familiar nasally voice asked from nearby.

Adrien smiled as he turned to his kwami, watching Plagg as he inhaled a wedge of his favored Camembert. “I do, surprisingly,” he admitted. “I really, really do.” He sat up suddenly, disbelief beginning to cloud his face. “Today really happened, right, Plagg? Taking down Lila this morning, the talk with Father this afternoon..”

“The mutual breakdown that you and Spots had? Yeah, today really happened, Kid,” the cat-like being snickered as he took another bite of his stinky, gooey cheese.

“Wow,” the blond breathed out, his voice a little shaky as he flopped back down onto his mattress. 

The little embodiment of Destruction looked over at his charge and noted the way that his Holder was splayed out over the duvet, but it was the unseeing glassy green of his irises as the model stared at the ceiling that sent shivers through his feline senses.

“Hey, Kid,” Plagg called out, trying to pull the model out of his funk. “Call your girlfriend, will ya?”

“Wha?” Green eyes blinked up hazily at the god-like creature as the teen was pulled from reliving his memories.

“What are ya, deaf? I said call your girlfriend! You did promise to call her after you and your pops were done talking,” the cat-themed kwami snarked, shaking his head at his Chosen.

The reminder did as was intended: it caused the young man’s gemstone eyes to brighten at the thought that Marinette was his Ladylove and to also forget that the day had nearly begun in a rather craptastic fashion. 

“...you're right; I did promise her, didn’t I?” Adrien said with a lovesick smile on his face as he pulled out his phone. Waking up his device displayed a recently taken picture of himself with his raven-haired love, and the blond couldn't help but stare at it in wonder for just a little longer before unlocking the screen and pulling up his contacts.

A few finger taps later and the phone rang twice before a familiar face filled his screen.

“Hey, handsome,” Marinette said teasingly with a smirk. “Miss me already?”

Adrien’s face softened to give his Lady a loving look. “I always miss you, Princess.”

She looked him over swiftly, studying his face with a concerned look replacing the smirk on her own. “Did your talk with your father turn out okay?”

“It was… emotional,” the blond said in an uncertain voice as if he wasn't sure if that was the correct word to use. “Voices were raised, mainly my own, but I think I finally got through to him.”

“That’s... good, at least,” the dark-haired girl said hesitantly. “How are you feeling?” 

“Kind of all over the place? It’s been a day,” he said with a shrug.

“I understand,” she said with a soft smile. “Why don't you take the kitty express and come over. We can have hot chocolate and snuggles, and you can tell me all about it if you want to.”

Giving her a confused look, Adrien asked, “Aren’t Nino and Alya with you?”

“They went home a little while ago,” Marinette said as she shook her head. “They were using video editing jargon as they left, and I have no idea what they were talking about. So? Do you want to come over?”

“Sounds purrfect, Princess. I'll be over after dinner.”

“I look forward to it, Handsome. See you later.”

Dinner with his father was a little awkward still, but conversation was exchanged. Adrien explained to the elder Agreste more information about the project he was assigned with Marinette, and how they were working together with the rest of their friends to really make it shine. Gabriel listened and asked appropriate questions, then had Nathalie clear the teen’s schedule outside of one or two photoshoots that couldn't be rescheduled so that the blond could work on his project.

Adrien nearly choked on his water when that happened, but swiftly covered it up, saying that it just went down the wrong pipe.

No one heard the little cat-like Kwami snicker in the blond’s pocket except for said blond.

A short while later, Adrien left his home dressed in his black leather catsuit, running across the rooftops of Paris to land on a rooftop not far from one particular bakery.

Pulling out his baton, he sent a message to Ladybug’s civilian phone number.

**TheChatsMeow** : is this a balcony or front door visit?

**MDCDesigns** : balcony tonight. You can come in through the front door tomorrow.

With a nod, Chat Noir took one final leap to land as quietly as he could on the tiled floor of Marinette’s balcony.

He no sooner landed than the skylight hatch had opened with two half-lidded blue topaz eyes peering up at him.

Taking that as an invitation, the feline-themed hero slunk in like the cat that he was, his eyes hardly leaving the dark-haired angel before him.

Marinette closed the hatch quickly and quietly, then turned to reach the shelf above her pillows and produced two mugs of hot chocolate. She handed one over to him without a word, then moved to sit next to him like they often did when they were both suited up, but much closer this time. 

Leaning her head against his shoulder, she quietly asked, “Do you want to talk about it?”

Clawed hands grasped tightly around the ceramic mug, Chat took a deep breath before responding. “Can we just… sit here for a moment, like this? This feels… really nice right now.” 

She looked up at him, searching his feline eyes for a moment before she replied, “Of course, Chaton.”

Her words made him relax further as they sat there, on her bed, drinking chocolate. When they finished, Marinette took both mugs and placed them back on her shelf before she once again turned to her partner. “Want to snuggle for a bit?”

“Yes, please,” he said quietly, nodding his head in earnest.

She smiled at him and laid back on her pillows, beckoning the black-clad hero to rest his head on her shoulder with a murmured, “come here”.

He did as she bid him to do, embracing her waist in his arms as he rested his head under her jaw. He closed his eyes and began to purr in ecstasy when she started to card her fingers through his unruly mane, the sound of her heartbeat a soothing balm to his sensitive kitty ears.

Marinette giggled slightly at the sensation of his hair tickling her chin and the vibrations of his purr, but continued to run her fingers through his soft golden hair, hoping that would make the boy in her arms feel a bit better.

Long moments passed before the designer’s ministrations began to slow, the calming sensation of the blond’s purring making her drowsy to the point of almost dozing off.

“I yelled at Father.”

The words were said so quietly that Marinette nearly missed them. She hummed in acknowledgment, but remained silent otherwise, allowing for her boyfriend to talk at his own pace.

“I've never done that before, at least not without some serious repercussions.” The blond continued softly, his purr making his voice all rumble-ly. His eyes remained closed as he breathed in her calming scent of vanilla and jasmine. “I told him about how Lila had been harassing me, threatening you, and the abuse that she had done to us both.” He opened his eyes to gaze up at her adoringly. “We also talked about you a little, but there was no yelling involved.”

“I’m glad about that,” she said to him in quiet humor and rested her palm against his cheek, her thumb grazing against his mask. 

Chat nuzzled into her hand, his purr growing a little louder at the loving touch before quieting down once more. “We also talked about Mother for a bit…,” he trailed off, a sorrowful expression startling to creep onto his masked features.

Noting his expression, the dark-haired girl knew that this would be hard to talk about. “He did?” She asked quietly, prompting him to keep going. 

He needed to talk about this. He knew it, and she knew it, but it was still a difficult subject to broach.

“He did,” the hero confirmed with a small nod. “He mostly acknowledged that he knew he had made some mistakes after she… disappeared,” he said with a swallow, knowing that it was a fruitless attempt to keep his tears at bay. “And he also admitted that he missed her nearly as much as I do.”

“Oh, Chat,” she cooed, gathering his face in both of her hands now. “It’s okay to miss her, you know.”

“... I know…,” he said a little brokenly, a few drops of saltwater escaping over the bottom edge of his mask. “It just… still hurts to admit it.”

Marinette brought him in for a close embrace, once again running her fingers in his mane to bring him comfort. “De-transform,” she murmured softly. “I want to give both sides of my boyfriend some comfort, please.”

A quiet “claws in” was said, and with a flash of bright yellow-green light later, Adrien Agreste was sobbing in her arms brokenly.

She let him cry, holding him tightly as the sobs wracked his body. She looked over to Plagg, who floated nearby with a sad expression on his face. 

Tikki came out of her hiding spot a moment later, having hidden away so that the two Holders could have a bit of privacy. The Ladybug Kwami said a few words to him in a language that the young Guardian didn't understand, then the two floated away, presumably to have a quiet chat of their own.

The designer continued to hold onto the broken boy in her arms, still running her fingers through his hair with one hand while also rubbing his back with the other. She had tears in her eyes as well, but she refused to let them fall. 

It was just so hard to know that her love was hurting so deeply, and had been for so long….

It didn’t help that the thought in the back of her head popped up that she had contributed to that hurt in some way by rejecting him for… well himself.

It just didn't sit right with her.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered, holding him to herself just a little tighter. “I am so, so sorry.”

His sobs had quieted down some by this point, so he heard her with crystal clear clarity. “What are you sorry for?” He asked, his voice rough from his recent crying.

Adrien lifted his face from her shoulder to look her in the eye, noticing the gleam of her unshed tears made her gemstone irises sparkle even more than usual. “Marinette? My Lady, why are you crying?”

“I’m not crying,” she said hastily as she averted her gaze from his, her cheeks blooming with the blush of embarrassment.

The model lifted a hand to her cheek and gently turned her face back to his. “Princess…,” he said in quiet admonishment.

“...I just realized that you have suffered so much,” Marinette said hesitantly, the tears that had threatened to fall spilling over her lash line in quiet surrender. “And that I have only contributed to that by rejecting you again and again for so long….”

“Hey, hey, shhh,” he shushed her quietly, brushing her hair away from her face with the backs of his knuckles, his thumb brushing away at the fallen tears. “Didn't we agree that all of that was in the past and that we would only go forward together from now on?”

“We did,” she acknowledged, brushing away her remaining tears with the heel of her palm. “But I want you to know that, from now on…”

She took a deep breath to quell her nerves. **_“_ ** **I am** **_not going anywhere,_ ** **I am** **_staying right here. No matter what... I'll be here…,”_ ** she sang quietly, bringing her forehead to rest against the blond’s **_“When it all feels so big, 'til it all feels so small.”_ **

**_“When it all feels so big,”_ ** Adrien echoed her words, brushing his nose against hers in comfort.  **_“'Til it all feels so small.”_ **

They leaned in closer, closing their eyes and brushing their lips together in a soft, gentle, butterfly whisper of a kiss. 

**_“'Til it all feels so small,”_ ** they both vowed in a whisper against each other’s lips before they both dove back in for another kiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone for the Birthday wishes last chapter update! If you haven’t already, please check out my other new works: _Hurts To Be Human _and _Not Always What We Seem (Rarely What We Dream) _____
> 
> ____And Lila-anon, you’re wrong. You haven’t won at all, I just choose to ignore you. I mod my comments, so they never see the light of day beyond my inbox. So if you want to keep wasting your time, go right ahead. I’ve got thick skin, and I’m just as Italian as you._ _ _ _


	14. You Will Be Found (Reprise)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 🎵 “So let the sun come streaming in, 'cause you'll reach up and you'll rise again. Lift your head and look around, you will be found.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One more chapter left to post...
> 
> As always, a huge “Thank You” to [ Khanofallorcs](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Khanofallorcs/pseuds/Khanofallorcs) for being an absolutely Awesome Beta!

The next week and a half were a blur for the four friends as they continued to meet up, with Marinette and Adrien using their musical talents to the fullest extent while Alya and Nino recorded them tirelessly for the first few days. The next few consisted of the latter pair going through hours of footage and editing everything into one cohesive, well thought out video.

It was all pretty exhausting, to be honest.

But the day of the project reveal had finally arrived, and the group waited not-so-patiently as Juleka and Rose finished their presentation on Scrapbooking for their turn. 

“That was wonderful,” said their red-headed teacher, clapping politely along with the rest of the class as the pair of girls ended their presentation. “The next group that we have up is Marinette and Adrien, who also paired up with Alya and Nino to create a music video. Can you guys tell us a little about your project?”

“Of course, Ms. Bustier,” Adrien said as he, Marinette, Alya, and Nino moved to the front of the room to present. “Marinette and I had wanted to do a project that would reach out to everyone, not to just a select few. So, we decided that we wanted to perform a song. Did you guys know that Marinette plays the violin? And guitar? AND that she has an amazing voice, too?”

“Stop it,” Marinette shushed the blond, who only responded with an unashamed grin and a shrug. Shaking her head at him, she turned back to the audience of their peers. “Then we realized that we couldn’t exactly bring Adrien’s piano in here, so we thought that a music video would be a better option. Besides, it’s very difficult to sing and play the violin at the same time.”

“That’s where we came in!” Alya exclaimed, Nino nodding beside her. “We took different shots of them while they were practicing, as well as a few artistic ones, to help tell the story of the song.”

“We each took turns shadowing each of these two,” the DJ gestured to the pair of secret heroes, “as they warmed up instruments, performed solos, and harmonized individual sounds to create what you're about to listen to today. We were just the lucky ones who got to record it, and splice it all together so that you could see it too,” he said as he threw an arm around the blogger’s shoulders.

“ _ Dear Evan Hansen _ is a contemporary story of a young man with social anxiety who wants, more than anything, to make a connection and to feel like he belongs,” the designer said as she stepped forward. “But his chances at making those connections are threatened when he writes a letter that was never meant to be seen, tells a lie that was never meant to be told, and suddenly gets the chance at a life that he had never even dreamed that he could have.”

“The song that you are about to hear is called  _ ‘You Will Be Found’ _ , and its underlying theme of how, despite how alone you may feel, or what struggles you are facing, there is always someone out there willing to lend you a hand,” said the model as he stepped up next to the dark-haired girl and smoothly took her hand in his. Adrien turned to her, giving her one of his signature soft looks™ before he turned to face the class and said, “Because none of us are alone.”

“We hope that you enjoy watching this video just as much as we had fun making it,” said Alya as she led the group back to their seats while Nino helped set up the video file on Ms. Bustier’s laptop. 

Soon, the dulcet sounds of Adrien’s piano as he played the opening chords of the song suddenly echoed through the room, and on the projector’s screen was a fade-in close up of the blond’s long fingers as they gently pressed on the keys. This then transitioned to a split-screen showing Marinette in black and white in a seated position on a floor, presumably in Adrien’s room, leaning her arms against her knees.

**_“Have you ever felt like nobody was there?”_ ** she sang in a clear, low voice, her eyes downcast.  **_“Have you ever felt forgotten in the middle of nowhere? Have you ever felt like you could disappear?”_ ** she lifted her eyes to the camera, her blue eyes the only splash of color on the monochrome screen. **_“Like you could fall, and no one would hear?”_ **

She lowered her head in what appeared to be defeat, curling further into herself.

The scene then changed to Adrien moving to stand up from his piano bench, walking over towards someone, just beyond the camera lens.

**_“Well, let that lonely feeling wash away,”_ ** the blond sang, his green eyes also the only predominant color in an otherwise grayscale image.

The screen then split yet again, now having four quadrants, the last one showing a close up of Marinette’s fingers drawing forth some sensuously low notes on her violin, in addition to the ones of Adrien still playing the piano and the dark-haired girl sitting on the floor.

**_“Maybe there's a reason to believe you'll be okay, 'cause when you don't feel strong enough to stand…,”_ ** he knelt down then, still facing the camera.  **_“You can reach, reach out your hand,”_ ** he sang as he literally reached out to the person beyond the camera. 

A hand was then shown entering into Marinette’s quadrant of the screen, upturned. The hand was obviously Adrien’s, his ring glinting in the low lighting.  **_“And oh, someone will come running, and I know, they'll take you home,”_ ** his tone was soft and low, almost as if he were trying to reassure a frightened kitten. She looked up at him questioningly, while he gazed at her lovingly from his portion of the screen.

**_“Even when the dark comes crashing through, when you need a friend to carry you,”_ ** the blond crooned gently, causing the dark-haired girl’s face to soften. “ **_And when you're broken on the ground, you will be found.”_ **

Her face blossomed with a small smile as she slowly lifted her hand to place it into his.

He grasped it in a gentle, but firm, hold and carefully tugged her to her feet, their screens merging together. Keeping her hand in his, he brought it in close to his chest, urging her into his personal space.

**_“So let the sun come streaming in, 'cause you'll reach up and you'll rise again. Lift your head and look around,”_ ** he sang as he tilted her chin up gently with his free hand in an almost reverent gesture, her gemstone eyes shining up into his.  **_“You will be found.”_ **

**_“You will be found,”_ ** Marinette echoed in a soft voice, a look of awe on her face as she got lost in his green, green gaze.

**_“You will be found,”_ ** Adrien reassured, tracing her chin with his thumb.

**_“You will be found,”_ ** the dark-haired girl smiled as she turned into the blond, resting her back against his chest.

**_“You will be found,”_ ** the model confirmed as he brought his arms around her in a gentle embrace, his hands resting against her abdomen, with hers resting on top of his.

Suddenly, multiple frames were showing on the screen, appearing at different intervals all showing the musical pair playing different instruments. There was Adrien on his piano, then on the deck of the Liberty playing Ivan’s drums, and Marinette, playing her violin in her room and a borrowed guitar on the Liberty as well. The musical interlude was well placed to cover up the dialog that usually took place at this point in the song.

**_“There's a place where we don't have to feel unknown,”_ ** Marinette sang as she walked along the Seine, alone and in full color in a frame that dominated the screen. “ **_And every time that you call out, you're a little less alone.”_ **

**_“If you only say the word,”_ ** Adrien sang, standing on the steps of the Trocadero with his hands on his hips, also by himself and in vibrant color.

**_“From across the silence your voice is heard,”_ ** their voices rang out in perfect harmony from two different split screens.

The screen quickly switched so that a piano was in one corner and a guitar in another, making a gorgeous duet. Marinette’s violin added in the right amount of counterpoint to Adrien’s piano playing to make the musical transition seem seamless to those who knew that there was usually a fair bit of dialog at this point of the song 

The black corners of the screen were soon filled once more with the smiling faces of one blond model standing at the steps of the famous monument and one midnight-haired designer walking along the river, blending their voices in perfect harmony.

**_“Even when the dark comes crashing through, when you need a friend to carry you.”_ **

The scene changed to Adrien sitting on the steps of the school, a light rain falling, with him getting wet.

**_“When you're broken on the ground…”_ **

Suddenly, an umbrella appeared over him, and he looked up to see Marinette standing behind him with a kind smile on her face, eliciting him to respond in kind.

**_“You will be found!”_ **

The designer had held the umbrella with one hand and reached out with the other, presumably to help the blond up off of the ground.

**_“So let the sun come streaming in, 'cause you'll reach up and you'll rise again.”_ **

The blond reached up and took her offered hand, standing up before the dark-haired girl and pulling her in close.

**_“If you only look around,”_ ** they sang together in the rain as a one hundred eighty degree pan out shot of the two singers as they turned to look out from their position on the school steps.

**_“You will be found,”_ ** the pair sang in a perfectly blended low register that could send shivers down one's spine.

**_“(You will be found),”_ ** Marinette sang out in a perfect counterpoint with a clear soprano voice.

**_“You will be found,”_ ** their blended voices were once again put to use

**_“(You will be found),”_ ** the dark-haired girl’s voice once more stood out in the middle of the refrain.

**_“You will be found,”_ ** Adrien sang as a slight solo, as there were two frames of him doubling his voice in slightly different registers.

Then there was a black and white art shot of Adrien leaning up against his wall of windows that dominated the screen. The sunlight just beginning to pour in, making the blond turn to look out of the glass with his green eyes squinting as the next few lyrics were heard:

**_“Out of the shadows, the morning is breaking and all is new, all is new,”_ ** the pair of them could be heard singing in unison. 

The scene then transformed to one of Marinette in a similar position, also in black and white sitting hunched over her knees on her chaise near her big picture window, her blue eyes watching the sun beam in.

**_“It's filling up the empty, and suddenly I see that all is new, all is new.”_ **

**_“You are not alone,”_ ** Marinette’s voice rang out, her face filling up the screen before it shrank to about a third of its size and moved slightly off-center with the piano being played softly behind her.

**_“You are not alone,”_ ** her voice continued, this time a shot of her rosining up her bow dominated the screen before shrinking and retreating into a corner of it.

**_“You are not alone,”_ ** she continued still, but with a shot of Adrien at his piano following a similar fate while a bass guitar played in accompaniment to his piano.

**_“You are not alone,”_ ** this time, the frame was shot on the Liberty, the blond behind the drum kit while she tuned a borrowed guitar. Drums were being played at this point in the video, driving the music forward.

**_“You are not alone (You are not alone),”_ ** her voice was joined by Adrien’s this time, a shot of him singing the lyrics had also shrank, moving into position beside the frame with Marinette singing.

**_“You are not alone (You are not alone)”_ ** a shot of them walking together with the designer’s violin strapped to her back was shown before it too, shrank and was placed into position

**_“You are not, you are not alone (You are not alone)_ ** another one of the pair sitting at the piano bench, the designer’s hand pointing over one of the pages of sheet music on the model’s stand. Her violin was practically singing as it played in the background.

There was now a collage of those individual shots and more filling up the screen before a larger frame entered showing the dark-haired leaning on the railing of her balcony.

**_“Even when the dark comes crashin' through, when you need someone to carry you. When you're broken on the ground,”_ ** Marinette belted out dramatically lifting her hands skyward with the camera following the motion.

**_“You will be found!”_ ** Was sung as a shot of the sun in a cloudless sky was shown

**_“So when the sun comes streaming in,”_ ** Adrien sang while the shot faded in to show him standing at his window

**_“'Cause you'll reach up and you'll rise again,”_ ** Marinette’s voice joined his while the screen split to show her leaning against her own windowsill. **_“If you only look around...”_ **

**_“You will be found!”_ ** Their voices sang in unison once more.

**_“Even when the dark comes crashing through,”_ ** the blond sang as he began to jog down the Trocadero’s wide steps, his voice unwavering

**_“You will be found!”_ ** The designer sang as she ran off-screen, the Seine still flowing in the background behind her

**_“When you need someone to carry you,”_ ** the model continued his course down the steps to head towards an unseen meeting spot near the base of The Fountains of Warsaw

**_“You will be found!”_ ** The next frame showed a shot of Marinette running towards, past, and away from the camera

**_“You will be found!”_ ** The pair met each other in front of them just as the fountain’s marvelous water show had begun

**_“You will be found,”_ ** Adrien sang softly, brushing the hair out of Marinette’s face as they stood together on the plaza floor of the Trocadéro, their silhouettes framed in front of the famous fountain with the Eiffel Tower providing an incredible backdrop.

**_“You will be found,”_ ** Marinette and Adrien sang sotto voce together in the same frame, their foreheads touching as the final chords rang out 

As the screen faded to black, the classroom burst into applause, their classmates cheering for the group loudly. There was a shout from Kim, and a shrill whistle from Alix before Miss Bustier was finally able to regain control of the room. 

“That was… breathtaking!” She said after a moment. “Congratulations to you four, that was incredible teamwork! You all did a very amazing job!”

“Thank you, Ms. Bustier,” the four said in near-perfect unison that made the entire classroom laugh in amusement.

As the red-headed teacher called the next group up to present, Alya turned and spoke to the group at large, “I think that this was the best group project that I’ve ever been on.”

“I agree,” said Nino with a nod of his head.

“We make the best team, don't we?” Adrien said with a look towards his girlfriend, a mischievous glint reflecting in his glass green eyes.

Marinette looked around at her friends, her blue topaz eyes sparkling and a small smile playing at the corners of her mouth.

With as much work as they had done to ace their class project, they had come out better friends due to the conflict that had come before it. 

It didn’t hurt that two of them were already the very best of partners.

She looked Adrien in the eye and said teasingly, “We do,  _ mon coeur _ . We really, really do.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Are you interested in reading and writing fanfiction, making fanart or cosplaying/roleplaying for Miraculous? Then [ the Miraculous Fanworks Discord Server ](https://discord.gg/mlfanworks) is the place for you! Come and join over 1000 other fans as we share, discuss, and have a general good time bonding over the Fandom we all love!


	15. Finale

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Dear Evan Hansen,  
>  Today is going to be a good day   
> And here's why because today, today at least you're you and that's enough_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, a huge “Thank You” to [ Khanofallorcs](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Khanofallorcs/pseuds/Khanofallorcs) for being an absolutely Awesome Beta!

Dear Marinette Dupain-Cheng,

**_Today is going to be a good day, and here’s why…_ **

Because it doesn't matter if you are a straight-A student, an aspiring fashion designer, or a beloved superheroine of Paris.

You are inspiring, with or without the mask, to those around you to be kind.

You brighten up the room with your presence, and you make people feel good when you smile.

You are a beautiful person, inside and out…

And finally:  **_Because today, today at least, you are you…_ **

**_And… that's enough._ **

  
  


Marinette put down her pen and closed her diary with a sigh, placing it into her lockbox, and turning the key in its lock.

“Are you alright, Marinette?” A small voice asked an achingly familiar question.

The dark-haired girl turned towards its source, coming face to face with her kwami. She gave Tikki a small smile before saying softly, “I think so, Tikki.”

The little red embodiment of creation smiled widely, “I’m glad,” she said floating close enough to rest on the desk before her Holder. “It’s been an… interesting few weeks, hasn’t it?”

Marinette thought back to how this adventure had begun with one craptastic morning a few weeks ago when she thought that the world was against her. How it had developed into entering one art project with her friends, a love confession and identity reveal, and the takedown of her biggest bully. The performance of their final project being a rounding success was just the icing on the cake, in her opinion.

“It really has been, hasn’t it?” She asked rhetorically, bringing her focus back to her kwami with a smile.

Tikki made a sound of agreement, floating close to her Holder. “Isn’t it time for patrol?”

A thud sounded from the roof above them, answering Tikki’s question for the both of them.

With a grin, the dark-haired girl got up from her desk and climbed the stairs to her loft, intent on meeting with her beloved partner.

She popped open her skylight to see Chat Noir leaning against the railing of her balcony, humming a somewhat familiar tune as he admired the twilight view of the City of Lights.

Picking up the melody, Marinette started to sing, “ **_All we see is sky for forever._ ** **_We let the world pass by for forever….”_ **

The cat-themed hero turned towards her with a grin, white teeth glinting in a faint light, as he began to sing along, **_“Feels like we could go on for forever this way...this way.”_ **

They giggled together for a moment before the blond moved closer to the designer, giving her a loving look. “Are you ready to go out on patrol, M’Lady?” He asked, nodding to the ladybug kwami in greeting.

Two pairs of blue eyes met as Holder and Kwami looked at each other and nodded simultaneously. Moments later, Ladybug was standing where Marinette once stood.

With a smirk, the spotted hero unhooked her yo-yo from her hip and let it fly. “Catch me if you can, Kitty,” she said sassily, as she swung out, listening to his laughter trailing behind her.

It was not unusual for the City of Paris to witness its heroes chasing one another across its rooftops, whether it was in a playful or serious manner. It wasn't even unusual for the heroes to stop on a secluded platform on the Eiffel Tower.

However, it was unusual for the heroes of Paris to hide away and de-transform together to dance amongst the steel beams, singing at the top of their lungs.

**_“All we see is light….Watch the sun burn bright...We could be alright for forever this way…”_ **

Their voices echoed throughout the structure, making it ring with their joy for a few moments.

**_“All we see is sky for forever,”_ ** Adrien sang softly as he held the girl of his dreams in his arms, brushing a loose lock of hair from her face as he leaned in closer, touching his forehead to hers.

Brushing her nose against his in invitation, Marinette responded in kind with a smile.  **_“All I see is sky for forever.”_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And, at last, we have come to the end.
> 
> It is bittersweet moments like these that make it all worthwhile.
> 
> Thank you to all of my readers who took a chance on YWBF. Your comments have encouraged me to keep it going, and I’m so thankful to each and every one of you!
> 
> Please just remember that even when the dark comes crashing through, when you need a friend to carry you, and when you’re broken on the ground... you will be found.

**Author's Note:**

> Are you interested in reading and writing fanfiction, making fanart or cosplaying/roleplaying for Miraculous? Then [ the Miraculous Fanworks Discord Server ](https://discord.gg/mlfanworks) is the place for you! Come and join over 1000 other fans as we share, discuss, and have a general good time bonding over the Fandom we all love!


End file.
